The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission said Thursday that it had completed its Final Safety Report for the combined licenses for the South Texas Projects Units 3 and 4 and that there were no safety impediments that would preclude issuing licenses for construction and operation of the two proposed reactors.
The Bay City, Texas, power plant operated by STP Nuclear Operating Co., includes two Westinghouse Four-Loop pressurized water reactors about 90 miles southwest of Houston. South Texas Project Unit 1 began commercial operations in 1988 and has a license that expires Aug. 20, 2027. South Texas Project Unit 2 began commercial operations a year after Unit 1 and has a license that expires Dec. 15, 2028.
STP Nuclear has submitted applications for two Advanced Boiling Water Reactors (ABWR) at the site Nuclear Innovation North American became the lead applicant in January 2011. The 1,300-megawatt ABWR design was first approved in 1997.
The NRC said its staff would provide the approved safety report and the Final Environmental Impact Statement to the Commission at a mandatory hearing that will be scheduled later this year.