The decommissioning of Crystal River nuclear Unit 3
50 years sooner than originally intended, Duke Energy and Accelerated Decommissioning Partners, a joint venture of Orano USA and NorthStar Group Services, completed a transaction to start the decontamination and dismantlement (D&D) of Crystal River nuclear plant (CR3) in Citrus County, Florida
Decommissioning a nuclear plant is a safe and well-defined process with strict oversight by the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission. The process involves downsizing, packaging and shipping radioactive materials, such as the reactor vessel (RV), to an off-site licensed disposal facility.
Orano USA is a major supplier of materials and services with decades of experience dismantling and managing used nuclear fuel, as well as packaging and transporting radioactive materials. NorthStar is the largest demolition company in the world, with active D&D operations at multiple USA nuclear sites.
CSDA member In-Place Machining (IPM) was contracted by Orano to design, build, test, deliver and provide on-site services for a Multi-Purpose Reactor Vessel (MPRV) Work Platform system. The delivered solution was designed to be used for the specific purpose of supporting the segmentation, packaging and disposal of the Crystal River Unit 3 Reactor Vessel and Reactor Vessel internals.
Reprinted courtesy of the Concrete Sawing & Drilling Association – Concrete Openings, March 2024.