Two of four steam generators for San Clemente facility are expected to arrive next month
– By Christopher Smith –
According to a report in the LA Times, the first of four new Mitsubishi steam generators needed to keep the San Onofre nuclear power plant in operation is making its way to the plant in northern San Diego County by ship, barge and a tractor-trailer-like vehicle with 256 wheels. The 650-ton pieces of equipment are intended to extend the life span of the facility.
The installation is "a major milestone in the station's history," said Ross Ridenoure, Southern California Edison senior vice president and chief nuclear officer. "We're committed to making sure it's done right."
To maneuver the 22-foot-diameter generators into the plant's two reactor domes, crews will cut a 28-foot-wide opening through the 4 to 6 feet of concrete, steel reinforcement bars and thick cables that secure each building. Two generators will be installed by crane inside the power plant's northern dome after the summer, with two more going in the southern dome in the fall of 2010, according to Southern California Edison officials.
The generators produce steam. The steam generator separating the reactor system from the turbine system plays a crucial role in maintaining the reliability of the entire PWR plant. Since producing its first unit in 1970 for the Mihama Unit 2, Mitsubishi have continuously improved the design. More than 90 steam generators, including replacement units, have been manufactured and delivered.
Similar steam generator projects have been completed dozens of times at other nuclear plants around the country, so the San Onofre undertaking is not new territory, Ridenoure said. Each reactor will be shut down for about four months while the steam generators are replaced.
"We are taking every reasonable precaution to make sure that this project goes off without a hitch," Ridenoure said.