Beaver Valley Power Station Completes New Emergency Operations Facility

AKRON, Ohio, March 30, 2012 /PRNewswire via COMTEX/ -- FirstEnergy Nuclear Operating Company (FENOC), a subsidiary of FirstEnergy Corp. FE +0.37% , today announced that construction of the Emergency Operations Facility for its Beaver Valley Power Station has been completed.

The new 12,000 square-foot facility supports overall management of activities related to maintaining public health and safety during the unlikely event of an emergency at the plant. The facility also will be used by Beaver Valley's emergency response organization during quarterly training drills and bi-annual exercises evaluated by the Nuclear Regulatory Commission and the Federal Emergency Management Agency to ensure preparedness to respond to an emergency.

"FENOC and Beaver Valley view protection of public health and safety as one of our primary responsibilities," said Paul Harden, vice president of Beaver Valley Power Station. "The new Emergency Operations Facility underscores our commitment to the community and ensures that responsibility is fully upheld."

Features of the new state-of-the-art Emergency Operations Facility include: enhanced technologies that aid in timely monitoring and collection of environmental data; a secured, online database for sharing plant conditions and other event information in real time between company, local, county and state emergency responders; updated computer equipment; and diverse telecommunications technology to enhance communications capabilities. In addition, multiple power supplies ensure the facility will not be affected by a loss of offsite power.

Located in Beaver Falls, Pa., the facility replaces an existing Emergency Operations Facility located on site at the Beaver Valley station in Shippingport, Pa.

FirstEnergy is a diversified energy company headquartered in Akron, Ohio. Its FENOC subsidiary also operates the Davis-Besse Nuclear Power Station in Oak Harbor, Ohio, and the Perry Nuclear Power Plant in Perry, Ohio.

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