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‘Standby Support’ for New Reactor Delays
The bill offers new plant investment protection in the form of “standby support” to offset the financial impact of delays beyond industry’s control that may occur during construction and during the initial phases of plant startup for the first six new reactors. The bill provides for 100 percent coverage of the cost of delays for the first two new plants, up to $500 million each, and 50 percent of the cost of delays, up to $250 million each, for plants three through six.

The standby support covers delays caused by the Nuclear Regulatory Commission’s failure to comply with schedules for “inspections, tests, analyses and acceptance criteria,” as well as delays caused by litigation. Costs covered under this provision include any principal or interest on any debt associated with the project. It would also cover any losses experienced by companies if they must buy power on the open market to meet contractual electricity supply obligations that would have been met by the new nuclear plant subject to the delay.

Nuclear Security
The bill includes the following security measures:

• a requirement that the NRC issue a rulemaking on its “design basis threat,” the range of threats against which nuclear plant security must defend
• periodic “force-on-force” drills by the NRC to help refine the ability to protect the plant from intruders, for nuclear power plants and fuel cycle facilities that handle highly enriched uranium
• a requirement that the NRC assign an employee as a federal security coordinator in each region.

The measures adopted reflect the evolution of security proposals introduced since the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11, 2001.