10 Mar (NucNet): The US Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) has issued a final safety evaluation report and final design approval for GE-Hitachi’s (GEH) Economic Simplified Boiling Water Reactor (ESBWR).
The approval, which indicates the NRC finds the design technically acceptable but does not fully certify the design, is good for 15 years.
In a statement on 9 March 2011 the NRC said its staff had spent approximately five years considering whether to certify the reactor. The ESBWR is designed to produce approximately 1,500 megawatts of electricity and it features enhanced systems to safely shut down the reactor or mitigate the effects of an accident.
“Our technical experts have asked tough questions to ensure GE-Hitachi has appropriately addressed the NRC’s requirements, and after their extensive technical evaluation they’re satisfied with the ESBWR design,” said Michael Johnson, director of NRC’s office of new reactors. “If the commission agrees with the staff, we’ll move on to fully certifying the design, incorporating it into our regulations using a rule-making process that includes a public comment period.”
A final design approval does not give permission to build or operate a reactor. Full certification, if granted by the commission following the staff’s recommendation, is valid for 15 years and allows a utility to reference the design when applying for a combined licence to build and operate a nuclear power plant.
The NRC said it has long sought standardisation of nuclear power plant designs to help enhance safety and bring efficiency to the reactor licensing process.
GEH said the final design approval constitutes a finding by the NRC staff that the ESBWR design is safe and all technical issues have been resolved. It clears the way for the ESBWR to be built in countries around the world that recognise that approval of a reactor design as acceptance by the ‘country of origin’.”
DTE Energy is considering building an ESBWR at a site near its Fermi-2 unit in Michigan. DTE applied for a combined construction permit-operating licence referencing the ESBWR design in September 2008.
The NRC has certified four other designs: General Electric’s Advanced Boiling Water Reactor (ABWR), and Westinghouse’s System 80+, AP600 and AP1000. The commission has issued proposed rules to certify revised versions of the ABWR and AP1000. The staff is reviewing applications to certify two other designs: Areva’s US Evolutionary Power Reactor and Mitsubishi’s US Advanced Pressurised Water Reactor.
>>Related reports in the NucNet database (available to subscribers)
GE And Hitachi Launch New Nuclear Company (News No. 139, 5 June 2007)
GE-Hitachi Looks To Potential Italian Nuclear Projects (News In Brief No. 48, 10 March 2010)
GE-Hitachi’s Next Generation Reactor Passes US Safety Review (News in Brief No. 192, 27 October 2010)
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