Degraded cables require special inspection

The Nuclear Regulatory Commission announced this morning it will begin a special inspection at Duke’s Oconee nuclear plant to assess the degradation of power cables on startup transformers for two of the plant’s three units.  The special inspection starts tomorrow.  According to the NRC, “A plant operator making routine inspections on Dec. 7 discovered a cable that should have been connected to the Unit 3 startup transformer was disconnected.  Upon further inspection, it was determined that other cables linked to the Unit 1 startup transformer were in a degraded condition.  All of the cables have been repaired and the transformers are available for use if needed.”  Notwithstanding that, Leonard Wert, acting regional administrator for the NRC, says his office believes a special inspection is warranted to gather more information about Duke’s response and also determine if there are generic issues that apply to other plants. The onsite portion of the inspection is to take several days.  A report documenting the results should be issued within 45 days of the completion of the inspection.