Showing posts with label U.S. Navy. Show all posts
Showing posts with label U.S. Navy. Show all posts
Tuesday, September 4, 2012
Navy and nuclear industry sign deal to fight workers shortage
The nuclear industry long has drawn employees from the U.S. Navy, so it makes sense that companies would look to the Navy again as the industry faces an impending shortage of skilled workers.
The Naval Nuclear Propulsion Program, which operates a large fleet of nuclear-powered submarines and ships, and more than 30 civilian nuclear energy companies recently signed an agreement that will assist in the recruitment of Navy veterans qualified to work in the field.
The Nuclear Energy Institute trade group has estimated that the industry will have to hire 25,000 more workers over the next four years to replace retirees and find new workers to staff plants now under construction in the southeast.
Under the agreement, nuclear-trained Navy personnel ending their active-duty commitment have the option of having their contact information forwarded to industry recruiters for companies participating in the program. And Navy recruiters will have access to the names of those enrolled in industry-training programs at about 40 community colleges across the nation.
"The beauty of this agreement is that it provides multi-avenue flow for training the next generation of nuclear workers, who can gain the skills and experience needed through formal education in or out of the military, on-the-job training or both that ensures a bright future in a growing industry," said Tony Pietrangelo, NEI senior vice president and chief nuclear officer.
Akron, Ohio-based FirstEnergy Corp., which owns and operates the Beaver Valley Nuclear Power Station in Shippingport, is one of the companies participating in the program.
FirstEnergy's Jennifer Young said the average age of the approximately 1,000 workers at the Shippingport plant is 49. Nuclear industry employees can retire as young as 55.
Read More...
Monday, April 30, 2012
Blackouts Possible with San Onofre Nuclear Power Plant Shutdown
State energy officials say Southern California could be hit by rotating blackouts this summer if a heat wave hits while San Onofre's twin reactors remain dark, though some activists insist the plant should be shut down forever.
The Navy is San Diego Gas & Electric's largest customer, and the utility has been working on an agreement under which the Navy would temporarily reduce its energy consumption if regional supplies get scarce. In exchange, the Navy would receive a break on electricity rates.
While utilities are working with customers to prepare for possible blackouts in the summer heat, protesters rallied over the weekend demanding the reactor never be resarted.
The loss of the nuclear plant also makes it harder to import power into the San Diego area, where reliable energy transmission has long been a thorny issue.
"If the (San Onofre) units remain down, you obviously have less power supply down there. If you have a transmission line go down, or another generator go down, you are in a very tight situation," said Bruce Kaneshiro, a supervisor at the state Public Utilities Commission.
The San Onofre Nuclear Power Plant, which can crank out enough electricity for 1.4 million homes, has been shut down for nearly three months while investigators try to determine the cause of excessive wear on hundreds of alloy tubes that carries radioactive water in its massive steam generators.
Last week the Irvine City Council urged the Nuclear Regulatory Commission to thoroughly review safety conditions at the plant before it is considered for relicensing in 2022.
The city requested in a letter that the evacuation zone be expanded to 50 miles, from 10 miles.
Nuclear experts, councilmembers and community members spoke at a "Shut Down San Onofre" rally held near San Onofre State Beach.
"So many of us people that live around this different part of town are so concerned about the danger, the risk of being exposed to whatever could happen to this plant,” said activists Randy Ziglar.
Many plant workers say the company practices strict safety measures.
San Onofre's plant is in Congressman Darrell Issa's district. Issa said he hopes to see at least one reactor returned to service by June.
He says if it can be done with 100-percent safety, he'd like to have one or both of those reactors back online.
Sunday, April 29, 2012
Navy nears power deal to help avoid Cal blackouts
LOS ANGELES – The U.S. Navy is nearing a first-time agreement to curb electricity use at its sprawling San Diego-area bases if power runs short in Southern California this summer, a deal intended to diminish the threat of blackouts while the troubled San Onofre nuclear plant remains offline.
The Navy is San Diego Gas & Electric's largest customer, and the utility has been working on an agreement under which the Navy would temporarily reduce its energy consumption if regional supplies get scarce. In exchange, the Navy would receive a break on electricity rates.
The company has similar agreements with large industrial customers, which can slash the demand for power at critical times and keep the lights burning.
State energy officials say Southern California could be hit by rotating blackouts this summer if a heat wave hits while San Onofre's twin reactors remain dark, though some activists insist adequate reserves are on hand.
The plant, which can crank out enough electricity for 1.4 million homes, has been shut down for nearly three months while investigators try to determine the cause of excessive wear on hundreds of alloy tubes that carries radioactive water in its massive steam generators.
The loss of the nuclear plant also makes it harder to import power into the San Diego area, where reliable energy transmission has long been a thorny issue.
"If the (San Onofre) units remain down, you obviously have less power supply down there. If you have a transmission line go down, or another generator go down, you are in a very tight situation," said Bruce Kaneshiro, a supervisor at the state Public Utilities Commission.
Capt. Dora Lockwood, a Navy spokeswoman, said the company is working on a target for power reductions, if needed, at the numerous Navy installations in San Diego County, which include Naval Base San Diego, the Naval Air Station North Island in Coronado and Miramar Marine Corps Air Station.
"We will do our best, while preserving our capability to carry out our mission responsibilities, to support their request," Lockwood said.
SDG&E spokeswoman Jennifer Ramp said a deal could be finalized shortly.
"The military is aware of the challenges this summer," Ramp said.
State energy planners have been working on a strategy to find replacement power in the region and reduce demand if hot weather hits while the nuclear plant is sidelined. Those plans include restarting two retired power plants in Huntington Beach, urging conservation, such as using air conditioners sparingly, and seeking temporary power cutbacks, if needed, from the military and public agencies.
On Friday, Southern California Edison, which operates San Onofre, asked state regulators to approve a plan to promote conservation among its commercial customers in Orange County — they can earn a 10 percent rebate by cutting consumption by 10 percent during the summer, when demand is high.
No date has been set to restart either reactor, which are located between San Diego and Los Angeles.
It takes power to move power, and the restart of the Huntington Beach plants will allow increased transmission into the region, said Stephanie McCorkle, a spokeswoman for the agency that operates the state's wholesale power system, the California Independent System Operator.
The loss of the nuclear plant can restrict power imports into San Diego area by up to 30 percent. The San Diego utility hopes a new, $1.8 billion transmission line will be completed by summer, which would help fill any shortages.
The twin, natural gas-fired plants in Huntington Beach were retired earlier this year. The gas line feeding the plants was severed and 3-foot holes were cut in the boilers, a requirement after taking them out of service.
Eric Pendergraft, president of AES Southland, which operates the Huntington Beach plants, said Thursday that repairs to the boilers and other equipment would begin shortly. He predicted the plants would be ready to restart in mid-May.
The company has to strike agreements with the state wholesale power system before returning to service.
Some officials in nearby communities have been calling for San Onofre to shut down permanently, and last week the Irvine City Council urged the Nuclear Regulatory Commission to thoroughly review safety conditions at the plant before it is considered for relicensing in 2022. The city requested in a letter that the evacuation zone be expanded to 50 miles, from 10 miles.
The trouble at San Onofre began to unfold in late January, when the Unit 3 reactor was shut down as a precaution after a tube break. Traces of radiation escaped, but officials said there was no danger to workers or neighbors. Unit 2 had been taken offline earlier in January for routine maintenance and refueling, but investigators later found unusual wear on tubing in both units.
The excessive tube wear has raised questions about the integrity and safety of replacement generators the company installed in a multimillion-dollar makeover in 2009 and 2010.
The plant's four steam generators each contain nearly 10,000 tubes that carry hot, pressurized water from the reactors. The tubes are a critical safety barrier — if one or more break, there is the potential that radioactivity could escape into the atmosphere. Also, serious leaks can drain cooling water from a reactor.
Test results show that two types of wear have occurred at both units — tubes are rubbing and vibrating against adjacent tubes, as well as against support structures inside the generators.
Federal and company investigators are trying to determine why that is happening.
An environmental group, Friends of the Earth, has claimed SCE misled the NRC about design changes that it said are the likely culprit in excessive tube wear and has urged more detailed study before the reactors are restarted.
S. David Freeman, an adviser to the group, said last month that warnings about blackouts are unnecessary, since power can be managed to avoid any customer outages, even without San Onofre.
"California is not and cannot be one power plant away from rolling blackouts," Freeman, a former general manager at the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power, wrote to the Independent System Operator.
He said it was disturbing that state energy officials are "warning of a return of blackouts unless a very troubled nuclear plant is rushed back into operation."
SCE has said safety remains its priority.
The Navy is San Diego Gas & Electric's largest customer, and the utility has been working on an agreement under which the Navy would temporarily reduce its energy consumption if regional supplies get scarce. In exchange, the Navy would receive a break on electricity rates.
The company has similar agreements with large industrial customers, which can slash the demand for power at critical times and keep the lights burning.
State energy officials say Southern California could be hit by rotating blackouts this summer if a heat wave hits while San Onofre's twin reactors remain dark, though some activists insist adequate reserves are on hand.
The plant, which can crank out enough electricity for 1.4 million homes, has been shut down for nearly three months while investigators try to determine the cause of excessive wear on hundreds of alloy tubes that carries radioactive water in its massive steam generators.
The loss of the nuclear plant also makes it harder to import power into the San Diego area, where reliable energy transmission has long been a thorny issue.
"If the (San Onofre) units remain down, you obviously have less power supply down there. If you have a transmission line go down, or another generator go down, you are in a very tight situation," said Bruce Kaneshiro, a supervisor at the state Public Utilities Commission.
Capt. Dora Lockwood, a Navy spokeswoman, said the company is working on a target for power reductions, if needed, at the numerous Navy installations in San Diego County, which include Naval Base San Diego, the Naval Air Station North Island in Coronado and Miramar Marine Corps Air Station.
"We will do our best, while preserving our capability to carry out our mission responsibilities, to support their request," Lockwood said.
SDG&E spokeswoman Jennifer Ramp said a deal could be finalized shortly.
"The military is aware of the challenges this summer," Ramp said.
State energy planners have been working on a strategy to find replacement power in the region and reduce demand if hot weather hits while the nuclear plant is sidelined. Those plans include restarting two retired power plants in Huntington Beach, urging conservation, such as using air conditioners sparingly, and seeking temporary power cutbacks, if needed, from the military and public agencies.
On Friday, Southern California Edison, which operates San Onofre, asked state regulators to approve a plan to promote conservation among its commercial customers in Orange County — they can earn a 10 percent rebate by cutting consumption by 10 percent during the summer, when demand is high.
No date has been set to restart either reactor, which are located between San Diego and Los Angeles.
It takes power to move power, and the restart of the Huntington Beach plants will allow increased transmission into the region, said Stephanie McCorkle, a spokeswoman for the agency that operates the state's wholesale power system, the California Independent System Operator.
The loss of the nuclear plant can restrict power imports into San Diego area by up to 30 percent. The San Diego utility hopes a new, $1.8 billion transmission line will be completed by summer, which would help fill any shortages.
The twin, natural gas-fired plants in Huntington Beach were retired earlier this year. The gas line feeding the plants was severed and 3-foot holes were cut in the boilers, a requirement after taking them out of service.
Eric Pendergraft, president of AES Southland, which operates the Huntington Beach plants, said Thursday that repairs to the boilers and other equipment would begin shortly. He predicted the plants would be ready to restart in mid-May.
The company has to strike agreements with the state wholesale power system before returning to service.
Some officials in nearby communities have been calling for San Onofre to shut down permanently, and last week the Irvine City Council urged the Nuclear Regulatory Commission to thoroughly review safety conditions at the plant before it is considered for relicensing in 2022. The city requested in a letter that the evacuation zone be expanded to 50 miles, from 10 miles.
The trouble at San Onofre began to unfold in late January, when the Unit 3 reactor was shut down as a precaution after a tube break. Traces of radiation escaped, but officials said there was no danger to workers or neighbors. Unit 2 had been taken offline earlier in January for routine maintenance and refueling, but investigators later found unusual wear on tubing in both units.
The excessive tube wear has raised questions about the integrity and safety of replacement generators the company installed in a multimillion-dollar makeover in 2009 and 2010.
The plant's four steam generators each contain nearly 10,000 tubes that carry hot, pressurized water from the reactors. The tubes are a critical safety barrier — if one or more break, there is the potential that radioactivity could escape into the atmosphere. Also, serious leaks can drain cooling water from a reactor.
Test results show that two types of wear have occurred at both units — tubes are rubbing and vibrating against adjacent tubes, as well as against support structures inside the generators.
Federal and company investigators are trying to determine why that is happening.
An environmental group, Friends of the Earth, has claimed SCE misled the NRC about design changes that it said are the likely culprit in excessive tube wear and has urged more detailed study before the reactors are restarted.
S. David Freeman, an adviser to the group, said last month that warnings about blackouts are unnecessary, since power can be managed to avoid any customer outages, even without San Onofre.
"California is not and cannot be one power plant away from rolling blackouts," Freeman, a former general manager at the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power, wrote to the Independent System Operator.
He said it was disturbing that state energy officials are "warning of a return of blackouts unless a very troubled nuclear plant is rushed back into operation."
SCE has said safety remains its priority.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)