PPL Corp. shut down Unit 2 at its Susquehanna nuclear power plant near Berwick on Wednesday to inspect the unit's turbine blades for cracking following the discovery in April of cracks in Unit 1 at the plant.
"We are prepared to perform the inspection and any turbine blade replacements that may be needed for the continued safe operation of the unit," said Timothy S. Rausch, PPL Susquehanna senior vice president and chief nuclear officer.
The Unit 1 cracks were similar to, though less extensive than, those found and repaired on both turbines in 2011. Unit I remains out of service, although, the company says it is preparing to restart Unit 1 in the near future.
Workers also will install additional diagnostic equipment on the Unit 2 turbine to complement the equipment installed in 2011.
PPL will use data from the equipment to validate the suspected causes of the turbine blade cracking currently under engineering review, the company said.
Last year, it cost PPL between $82 million and $100 million to repair the turbine cracks, but cracks in Unit 1 this year should be less expensive to repair because fewer blades are affected and the unit was already scheduled to be shut down, Joe Scopelliti, a PPL spokesman has said. On Wednesday, Scopelliti said he does not know yet the cost of this year's repairs.
PPL previously announced that the financial impact of the additional turbine work on both Unit 1 and 2 is not expected to be "material," and that the company is maintaining its 2012 forecast of $2.15 to $2.45 per share in earnings from on going operations.
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