United States Nuclear Regulatory Commission

Office of Public Affairs, Region I

475 Allendale Road King of Prussia, PA 19406

Fax: 610/337-5241

Internet: dps@nrc.gov or nas@nrc.gov

I-98-86 July 20, 1998

Contact: Diane Screnci (610/337-5330) FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Neil A. Sheehan (610/337-5331)

NRC ASSESSES PERFORMANCE OF OYSTER CREEK NUCLEAR POWER PLANT,

WITH ‘SUPERIOR’ RATING FOR MAINTENANCE, ‘GOOD’ FOR OTHER AREAS

In the Nuclear Regulatory Commission’s latest assessment of its

performance, the Oyster Creek nuclear power plant has received

ratings of “superior” in one category and “good” in three others.

The boiling-water reactor is located in Lacey Township, N.J. It

is owned and operated by GPU Nuclear Corp.

The latest Systematic Assessment of Licensee Performance, or

SALP, report for Oyster Creek covers the period from December 1,

1996, through June 13.

NRC staff and GPU Nuclear officials will discuss the evaluation

during a meeting scheduled for 10 a.m. on Tuesday, August 4, at

the plant. The session will be open to the public for

observation, and NRC staff will remain afterwards to answer

questions from members of the press and public.

Four functional areas of nuclear power plant performance are

rated in NRC SALP reports: plant operations, maintenance,

engineering and plant support. Ratings of Category 1

("superior"), Category 2 ("good") and Category 3 ("acceptable")

are assigned. The reports are issued roughly once every 18

months for each plant.

Oyster Creek received a rating of "superior" in the area of

maintenance, up from a "good" rating in the last SALP report

issued in January 1997. Plant operations and plant support

retained "good" ratings since the last report, while engineering

declined from a “superior” rating to “good.”

The NRC found that the overall performance at the plant was good

during the period. “Improvements were noted in many areas,

including a reduction in personnel errors,” NRC Region I

Administrator Hubert J. Miller wrote to GPU Nuclear in a letter

summarizing the report. “Material condition continued to

improve, resulting in a limited number of equipment challenges; a

superior rating was assigned in the maintenance area. However,
performance in the Engineering area was mixed, resulting in a

lowering of the performance rating for this area.”

In the area of operations, operator performance during day-to-day

activities and major planned “evolutions,” such as startups and

shutdowns, was determined to be excellent, supported by strong

management oversight and a commitment to high standards. On the

negative side, there were some performance problems involving

equipment configuration control and technical specification

implementation.

Maintenance did a very good job of keeping the plant in top

material condition and ensuring the availability of equipment,

and there was sustained strong performance in work and

radiological control practices.

Performance in the area of engineering was found to be mixed.

Although engineering support to plant operations and problem

resolution was generally good, and there was strong use of

industry experience, weaknesses were identified in programs and

procedures. For example, aspects of the motor-operated valve

program remained incomplete.

Continued good performance was noted in the area of plant

support, with significant improvements made in radiological

exposure control and radiological waste-handling practices.

Nevertheless, there were problems in the radiological effluents

control program.

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(NOTE: A copy of the full SALP report is available on the NRC’s

Internet home page at www.nrc.gov.)