NRC Approves Transfer of Pilgrim Plant Operating License from Boston Edison to Entergy Nuclear

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	NRC NEWS U. S. NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION
	Office of Public Affairs	Telephone: 301/415-8200
	Washington, DC 20555-001	E-mail: opa@nrc.gov

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No. 99-93
May 3, 1999

NRC APPROVES TRANSFER OF PILGRIM PLANT OPERATING LICENSE
FROM BOSTON EDISON TO ENTERGY NUCLEAR

The Nuclear Regulatory Commission has approved the transfer of the operating license for the Pilgrim Nuclear Power Station near Plymouth, Mass., from Boston Edison Co. to Entergy Nuclear Generation Co.

Entergy Nuclear is an indirect wholly owned subsidiary of Entergy Corp. of New Orleans. Boston Edison is a wholly owned subsidiary of BEC Energy, a Massachusetts business trust with headquarters in Boston. The two companies applied for the license transfer in December after reaching agreement for Entergy Nuclear to buy the Pilgrim plant.

The NRC order consenting to the transfer requires that Entergy Nuclear provide and maintain a decommissioning fund for the plant of at least $396 million. Entergy Nuclear must further provide a special trust fund of $70 million, primarily to pay any taxes which may be due as the result of the decommissioning fund transfer from Boston Edison.

In addition, Entergy Nuclear is required to have access to a contingency fund of at least $50 million. This money is to be available, if needed, to pay Pilgrim operating and maintenance expenses, and costs to transition to a decommissioning status if the unit is permanently shut down, as well as the decommissioning costs themselves. The order also requires that Entergy Nuclear obtain the required amount of insurance to cover public liability claims in case of a severe nuclear accident.

During its review of the Entergy Nuclear application, the NRC staff considered comments filed by municipalities which purchase power from Pilgrim and by Citizens Urging Responsible Energy. In response to a Federal Register notice concerning the proposed license transfer, the NRC received requests for a hearing from the Massachusetts attorney general and two labor unions which represent workers at Pilgrim. Both requests were later withdrawn.

The Order has been posted on the NRC web site.