NRC ISSUES ANNUAL ASSESSMENTS FOR NATION’S NUCLEAR PLANTS

The Nuclear Regulatory Commission has issued annual assessment letters to the nation’s 

104 operating commercial nuclear power plants regarding their performance in 2012. As of the 

end of December, 99 plants were in the two highest performance categories.

“These assessment letters are an annual report card on the performance of the nation’s 

nuclear power plants,” said Ho Nieh, director of the Division of Inspection and Regional Support 

in the Office of Nuclear Reactor Regulation. “We ensure nuclear power plants are safe, 

inspecting them and rating their performance regularly, as part of our mission to protect people 

and the environment.”

Of the 99 highest-performing reactors, 81 fully met all safety and security performance 

objectives and were inspected by the NRC using the normal inspection program. Eighteen 

reactors were assessed as needing to resolve one or two items of low safety significance. For this 

performance level, regulatory oversight includes additional inspection and attention to follow up 

on corrective actions. 

These plants requiring additional inspection are: Beaver Valley 1 and 2 (Pa.); Browns 

Ferry 2 and 3 (Ala.); Catawba 1 (S.C.); Davis Besse (Ohio); Fermi 2 (Mich.); Fitzpatrick (N.Y.); 

Harris (N.C.); Nine Mile Point 1 (N.Y.); Point Beach 1 and 2 (Wis.); Prairie Island 2 (Minn.); 

River Bend (La.); San Onofre 2 and 3 (Calif.); Seabrook (N.H.) and Susquehanna 1 (Pa.). 

(Susquehanna 1 and River Bend Station have resolved their issues since the reporting period 

ended and have transitioned to the highest performing level.) 

Three nuclear reactors were in the third performance category with a degraded level of 

performance. For this category, regulatory oversight includes more NRC inspections, senior 

management attention and oversight focused on the cause of the degraded performance. These 

plants were Columbia Generating Station (Wash.), Perry 1 (Ohio), and Wolf Creek (Kans.). 

One reactor, Browns Ferry 1 in Alabama, is in the fourth performance category and 

requires increased oversight because of a safety finding of high significance, which will include 

additional inspections to confirm the plant’s performance issues are being addressed. 

NRC NEWS

U.S. NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION

Office of Public Affairs Telephone: 301/415-8200

Washington, D.C. 20555-0001

E-mail: opa.resource@nrc.gov Site: www.nrc.gov

Blog: http://public-blog.nrc-gateway.gov

No. 13-013 March 7, 2013
The Fort Calhoun plant in Nebraska is in an extended shutdown with significant 

performance issues and is currently under a special NRC oversight program distinct from the 

normal performance levels. Therefore, the plant will not receive an annual assessment letter.

Since the end of the 2012 reporting period, Duke Energy announced its intention to 

decommission its Crystal River 3 plant in Florida. Duke certified that intention to the NRC on 

Feb. 20. This brings the number of operating commercial nuclear power reactors in the United 

States to 103.

Later this spring and summer, the NRC will host a public meeting or other event in the 

vicinity of each plant to discuss the details of the annual assessment results. A separate 

announcement will be issued prior to each public assessment meeting. In addition to the annual 

assessment letters, plants also receive an NRC inspection plan for the coming year.

The NRC routinely updates information on each plant’s current performance and posts 

that information to the action matrix summary as it becomes available. The annual assessment 

letters sent to each operating reactor licensee are also available through the NRC’s webpage on 

the Reactor Oversight Process. Annual construction assessments for new reactors at the Vogtle 

and Summer sites and at Watts Bar 2 are also on the NRC website.

### 

News releases are available through a free Listserv subscription or by clicking on the EMAIL UPDATES 

link on the NRC homepage (www.nrc.gov). E-mail notifications are sent to subscribers when news releases are 

posted to NRC's website. For the latest news, follow the NRC on www.twitter.com/NRCgov.