The state Public Utilities Commission has ordered PG&E to pay $43.2 million back to customers for mismanaging the troubled fix of Unit 2 of the aging Diablo Canyon nuclear power plant, backing up an earlier ruling by regulatory judges who found the utility responsible for lapses in oversight.
Two regulatory judges already found the utility failed to properly oversee the $130 million retrofit to the Unit 2 generator back in 2019. The judges noted that leaks and excessive vibration continued at Unit 2 for two years after the utility declared the retrofit to the old unit complete.
Ultimately, Unit 2 was shut down for a full month to repair the issues left after the original retrofit project. The $43.2 million sum will be to reimburse customers for the cost of replacement power while the Unit 2 generator was idled in February 2021.
PG&E had previously pushed to have ratepayers cover the costs, saying the leaks and vibration issues were unforeseeable. It cited the contractor’s previously good track record and said the Unit 2 problems had not been an issue in earlier retrofit projects at other plants.
The Public Utilities Commission backed the regulatory judges in concluding the utility was obligated to verify the retrofit contractor had a plan to prevent the kind of vibrations that led to the plant’s monthlong shutdown.
In a statement, PG&E said it appreciated the commission’s “careful review” of the case. “We are disappointed by the decision but continue to review it to understand the commission’s perspective. We are confident we have taken the right steps to ensure safe and reliable operation of Diablo Canyon to support overall grid reliability.”
An anti-nuclear organization cites the finding of lapsed oversight as raising deeper questions about the integrity of an aging facility – previously slated for closure – that PG&E now says it wants to keep running past its current 2030 authorization. Still, the group says the $43.2 million the utility has been ordered to repay should provide customers with some relief from a string of rate hikes.
“They are having to do more and more retrofits to keep the plant running,” said David Weisman, executive director of the Alliance For Nuclear Responsibility anti-nuclear group. “This finding shows that PG&E clearly doesn’t have the competence to keep this old machine running.”
Weisman worries that legislation passed after the Diablo retrofit failure makes ratepayers pay up to $300 million in plant retrofit costs, whether or not the work is properly managed. “PG&E now has a virtual free pass to screw up,” he said. “They can make up to $300 million in mistakes, we can’t say ‘boo.’’’
But PG&E cites the Diablo retrofit case as proof of how closely it monitors such projects to assure the plant meets “our rigorous standards” and takes “proactive steps as necessary to ensure long-term safe and reliable operation.”
The utility says the plant is continually inspected by federal Nuclear Regulatory Commission authorities to assure compliance standards. “Time and time again, these inspectors have determined that the plant is safe to operate, and the NRC’s assessments have placed it among the highest performing plants in the nation.”
Source: NBC Bay Area
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