South Carolina Utility Finishes Repairs

South Carolina Electric & Gas Co. has almost completed repairs on a faulty weld in a pipe in the reactor coolant system at the V.C. Summer nuclear station, with the plant to return to service in March.

About 90 percent of the welding process is complete and all repairs and testing will be conducted in the next several weeks.Once repair work is completed, the utility expects to go through the normal startup process.

Last October, South Carolina Electric & Gas shut down the 1,000-megawatt plant for a routine refueling and maintenance outage. It was during the inspection phase of the shutdown, when plant employees discovered indications of a small leak.The leak was coming from a small hole in a weld in a primary coolant system pipe. A piece of pipe, which includes the entire weld, has been cut out and a new pipe is being installed.

The utility has also completed the evaluation of an electrical ground problem in the generator of its 385-megawatt Cope generating station. Materials to repair the generator have been located and the unit will be back in service by late March.

The energy cost of replacement power during the outages of these facilities is expected to be included as a component of total fuel costs in the utility’s annual electric fuel cost hearing before the Public Service Commission of South Carolina in April.