NRC proposes $145,000 civil penalty to Tennessee Valley Authority

KNOXVILLE - The Nuclear Regulatory Commission has proposed the assessment of a $145,000 civil penalty to the Tennessee Valley Authority for submitting incomplete and inaccurate information to the NRC that was material in a licensing decision at the Watts Bar nuclear plant.

TVA has admitted to the Severity Level III violation but can contest the assessment of the civil penalty through alternative dispute resolution, involving an independent mediator, if it chooses.

An NRC inspection completed on Aug. 1, 2019, concluded that TVA, on multiple occasions as part of the licensing of Watts Bar Unit 2, and also as part of a license amendment request for Watts Bar Unit 1, submitted incomplete and inaccurate information to the NRC regarding the adequacy of an offsite electric power system.

TVA inaccurately reported to the NRC from July 2010 to January 2015 that two common service station transformers could be counted on as qualified sources of offsite power to be used for accident mitigation. An NRC inspection team identified that the transformers lacked adequate capacity to provide power to safety-related equipment in certain accident scenarios.

The violation did not result in any negative consequences, and TVA has since instituted corrective actions to prevent a recurrence of the violation.

Published December 2, 2019