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Westinghouse updates council on LEU Plus expansion and Columbia fuel operations; environmental steps highlighted
Summary
Westinghouse representatives reported current fuel manufacturing activity at Columbia, environmental risk‑reduction work with Clemson and DES, progress supplying advanced (ADAPT/LEU Plus) fuel to Turkey Point units, and site‑preparation steps for the LEU Plus facility including a Nationwide Permit 27 action and seasonal tree clearing.
Roy Stutz, senior director of Westinghouse’s Columbia fuel fabrication facility, and Elise Malik, project director for LEU Plus manufacturing, briefed the council on operations, advanced fuel work and the planned LEU Plus expansion.
Stutz described environmental risk‑reduction activities: an on‑site feasibility study, partnerships with Clemson University for bench‑scale treatability tests, and a mature underground piping inspection program. He said Columbia is a primary grid‑fabrication site and invested in quality improvements, including an additional laser welder to meet demand.
Stutz explained ADAPT (doped fuel pellets with chromia/alumina) as a higher‑density, accident‑tolerant fuel product with improved oxidation resistance and lower fission‑gas release, enabling longer (24‑month) reactor cycles for suitable plants; Westinghouse has supplied portions of such fuel to Florida Power & Light’s Turkey Point reactors and expects further deliveries.
Malik described the LEU Plus expansion as a new building operating under the existing license with an updated environmental report; she said the project will move wet conversion processes to dry conversion and does not expect higher emissions. She described derisking work at the construction pad — relocating a jurisdictional ditch to meet Nationwide Permit 27, removing 33 acres of trees in a season‑sensitive window to avoid bat and turtle migration impacts, and test piling planned for Q2. Malik said final reviews continue and a bridal FID is expected in Q2 (presenter phrasing).
Why it matters: the expansion supports domestic fuel capabilities that Westinghouse says will enable longer reactor cycles and strengthen the domestic supply chain for key fuel components. Westinghouse and council members discussed inspection regimes with NRC and the benefits of close regulatory coordination to shorten uncertainty around schedules and inspections.
Questions addressed domestic production of gadolinium and integration of burnable absorbers into designs, plus operator training and simulator work to produce licensed staff for eventual start‑up.
