A temporary staffing shortage at the Nuclear Regulatory
Commission will delay the relicensing of the Vermont Yankee nuclear power plant.
Commission staff were scheduled to issue the renewal last
Thursday, but the agency’s attention in recent days has been focused on a
series of earthquake and tsunami triggered emergencies at Japan’s Fukushima
Daiichi nuclear plant. Several NRC staff members have traveled to Japan to
assist in efforts there.
The commission granted the 20-year license extension to the plant
on March 10. The Vermont Yankee, which is owned by Entergy, was first licensed
in 1972. It uses a GE BWR-4 reactor with Mark I containment. The agency has made no
indication that it will rescind the extension, although the Vermont state
Senate earlier passed a measure that attempts to block the relicensing because
of previous tritium leaks at the plant.