Sign in Subscribe
Electric utilities

Nuclear Waste Storage Casks at Monticello Plant Found to Have Had Improper Safety Testing

Strategic Insights

— 2 min read

Federal investigators have uncovered evidence that two contract employees working for Xcel Energy improperly tested safety-related welds on casks containing high-level nuclear waste at the Monticello, Minnesota, nuclear power plant. The improper testing was discovered when an NRC inspector reviewed videos of the work, revealing that the employees had waited significantly less time than required to check for cracks in the welds, with some checks lasting as little as 23 seconds. The findings, released by the US Nuclear Regulatory Commission, also state that the employees falsified reports to make it appear as though they had waited the full 10-15 minutes as required by procedure. Xcel officials have acknowledged that they did not monitor the work of the contract employees as they performed the tests, and the company has taken steps to ensure that such incidents do not occur again.

Key Takeaways:

  • Two former contract employees for Xcel Energy, TriVis Inc., were accused of willfully violating safety procedures and falsifying reports about testing welds on nuclear waste casks at the Monticello plant in late 2013.
  • The employees, who were tasked with placing dye on welds to check for cracks, waited significantly shorter times than required, with some checks lasting as little as 23 seconds.
  • The employees falsified reports to make it appear as though they had waited the full 10-15 minutes as required by procedure, stating that they had waited 10 minutes.
  • Xcel officials acknowledged that they did not monitor the work of the contract employees as they performed the tests, and the company has taken steps to ensure that such incidents do not occur again.
  • The improper testing was discovered when an NRC inspector reviewed videos of the work, revealing the discrepancies.
  • Xcel officials have stated that the Monticello casks are safe and secure, and the welds are good.
  • Xcel has taken steps to ensure that such testing is monitored in person by Xcel employees in the future.
  • The findings released by the NRC are not criminal charges, but they put Xcel on notice that the agency is considering escalated enforcement action.

Statistics:

  • 23 seconds: the shortest time that one of the employees waited to check for cracks in a weld.
  • 10-15 minutes: the required time for the testing procedure.
  • 2: the number of contract employees accused of willfully violating procedures.
  • 6: the number of casks that had been filled with high-level nuclear waste and were being tested.
  • $748 million: the revised cost of a five-year Monticello upgrade after the Minnesota Public Utilities Commission largely blamed Xcel's "imprudent management" for the cost overruns.
  • 2014: the year that an NRC official said Xcel needed to improve after inspectors found lapses in the reactor's flood-response plan.
  • 4 months ago: the time when the NRC reported a security-related violation at the plant.

Sources:

  • "U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC)"
  • "Union of Concerned Scientists"
  • "Minnesota Public Utilities Commission"
  • "NukeWatch"
  • "The Minneapolis Star Tribune"

Read more