Palisades restart faces new regulatory hurdle

The Nuclear Regulatory Commission has issued a formal order to Holtec International requiring it to correct the work environment at the Palisades nuclear plant in Michigan. The directive follows a review that found staff were hesitant to raise safety concerns due to fear of retaliation. This development complicates the restart timeline for a facility that has been central to federal efforts to revive the domestic nuclear sector.

The NRC conducted an inspection at the site in July after receiving questions about safety awareness. The review stemmed from two recent operational incidents. The first occurred last year when a contractor fell into the reactor cavity. The worker swallowed water and was transported off-site for medical care. Radiation protection staff decontaminated the individual, but an incident report noted that 300 counts per minute were still detected in the worker's hair.

A second incident took place in August during a refueling operation. A bundle of nuclear fuel rods tilted over, causing a delay in what was expected to be the first restart of a closed nuclear reactor in the United States. The regulator cited these events as part of a pattern of issues that contributed to the order.

The NRC also reported that nine of the 15 reactor operators at Palisades failed the initial license examination administered in July and August. Only six individuals received operator licenses. The regulator described the site's atmosphere as a chilled work environment that discouraged open communication regarding safety protocols.

Holtec International has never operated a nuclear power plant before. The company has secured approximately $2.2 billion in government support for the Palisades project. The restart has been promoted as a symbol of a resurgence in US nuclear power generation.

Critics of the project argue that financial and political pressure to meet surging energy demand from artificial intelligence could increase the likelihood of accidents. The order requires Holtec to address these cultural and procedural gaps to proceed with the restart plan.

Palisades is not the only shuttered facility in line for a comeback. The owners of two other plants slated for decommissioning, Three Mile Island in Pennsylvania and Duane Arnold in Iowa, announced restart plans soon after work began at Palisades.