9 of 15 operators fail exams as NRC orders Holtec to fix Palisades safety culture
The regulator cited a chilled work environment and two recent incidents in its directive to the company restarting the Michigan plant.
By Thiago Kovalenko ·
The Nuclear Regulatory Commission issued an order on Wednesday requiring Holtec International to address a "chilled work environment" at the Palisades nuclear power plant in Michigan. The directive comes after regulators identified safety culture issues during a July inspection.
The NRC found that employees at the site were reluctant to raise safety concerns due to a fear of retaliation. This finding followed two specific incidents that raised questions about safety awareness at the facility.
Last year, a contractor fell into the reactor cavity. The worker swallowed water and was transported off-site for medical treatment. While radiation protection staff decontaminated the individual, an incident report noted that 300 counts per minute were still detected in their hair.
A second incident occurred in August when a bundle of nuclear fuel rods tilted during a refueling operation. That event delayed the project, which was expected to be the first restart of a closed nuclear reactor in the United States.
The regulator also reported poor performance on licensing exams administered in July and August. Nine of the 15 reactor operators at Palisades failed the initial examination. Only six individuals received operator licenses from the NRC.
Holtec International has never operated a nuclear power plant before taking over the Palisades site. The company has secured approximately $2.2 billion in government support for the restart effort. The project is promoted as a key part of a push to revive the domestic nuclear industry.
Critics argue that financial and political pressure to revitalize nuclear power could increase the likelihood of accidents. This pressure stems from surging energy demand driven by artificial intelligence. Palisades is one of three shuttered facilities with restart plans. Owners of the Three Mile Island plant in Pennsylvania and the Duane Arnold plant in Iowa announced their own comeback projects soon after work began at Palisades.
