No. III-08-017 

Contacts: 

Viktoria Mitlyng 630-829-9662 

Prema Chandrathil 630-829-9663 

 May 2, 2008 

 E-Mail: opa3@nrc.gov 

Web site: www.nrc.gov

 

NRC TO DISCUSS 2007 PERFORMANCE ASSESSMENT 

FOR DAVIS-BESSE NUCLEAR POWER PLANT

 The Nuclear Regulatory Commission staff will meet with representatives of FirstEnergy 

Nuclear Operating Co. Tuesday, May 13, to discuss the agency’s assessment of safety 

performance for last year at the Davis-Besse Nuclear Power Plant. The plant is located in Oak 

Harbor, Ohio. 

 The meeting, which will be open to the public, is scheduled to begin at 3:00 p.m. EDT at 

the Davis-Besse Site Energy Education Center, 5501 North State Route 2, Oak Harbor. The 

NRC staff will present the results of the assessment, talk about the NRC and its range of 

activities, and be available to respond to questions or comments from the public before the close 

of the meeting. 

 “The NRC continually reviews the performance of the Davis-Besse plant and the nation’s 

other commercial nuclear power facilities,” NRC Region III Administrator James Caldwell said. 

“This meeting allows us to discuss our annual assessment of safety performance with the 

company and with local officials and area residents. Our goal is to explain how the NRC works 

and make sure as much information as possible is available on our regulation of these facilities.” 

 A letter sent from the NRC Region III Office to plant officials addresses the performance 

of the plant during the period and will serve as the basis for the meeting discussion. It is 

available on the NRC web site at: 

http://www.nrc.gov/NRR/OVERSIGHT/ASSESS/LETTERS/davi_2007q4.pdf. 

 The NRC’s assessment concluded that the Davis-Besse plant operated safely during the 

period. The NRC uses color-coded inspection findings and performance indicators to assess 

nuclear plant performance. The colors start with “green” and then increase to “white,” “yellow” 

or “red,” commensurate with the safety significance of the issues involved. 

 All of the inspection findings and performance indicators for Davis-Besse during 2007 

were determined to be “green.” As a result of this performance, the NRC will conduct the 

normal, baseline level of inspections during the upcoming year. 

NRC NEWS

U.S. NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION

Office of Public Affairs Region III 

2443 Warrenville Road 

Lisle IL 60532 
 The NRC letter to the utility identified some deficiencies in the area of maintaining 

proper engineering calculations and designs for plant equipment. The utility took actions to 

correct these deficiencies. The NRC’s review of the utility’s actions showed the problems were 

adequately addressed. 

 FirstEnergy has been conducting annual independent assessments of Engineering, 

Corrective Action, Operations and Safety Culture at the plant since 2004 under the terms of an 

NRC Confirmatory Order. The NRC will continue to conduct inspection activities to review 

these assessments, in addition to the baseline inspection program. The Nuclear Regulatory 

Commission will also continue to review the utility's progress in meeting the terms of NRC 

Confirmatory Order issued in 2007 regarding the company’s actions to ensure the prompt sharing 

of information of potential regulatory interest to the agency. 

 Routine inspections are performed by two NRC Resident Inspectors assigned to the plant 

and by inspection specialists from the Region III Office in Lisle, Ill., and the agency’s 

headquarters in Rockville, Md. Among the areas of plant operations to be inspected this year by 

NRC specialists are emergency preparedness, radiation protection, and reactor system operations. 

 Current performance information for Davis-Besse is available on the NRC’s web site at: 

http://www.nrc.gov/NRR/OVERSIGHT/ASSESS/DAVI/davi_chart.html. 

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