Dominion Hails Approval of Early Site Permit for North Anna Power Station

Statement of Mark McGettrick, president and chief executive officer, Dominion Generation, regarding the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission’s announcement that it has approved an Early Site Permit (ESP) to Dominion for the potential construction of a new reactor at its North Anna Power Station:

"The Nuclear Regulatory Commission’s action today to issue an Early Site Permit for North Anna is a significant accomplishment for our company and for the nuclear industry. The NRC has determined that the North Anna site is suitable for an additional reactor, allowing us to maintain the nuclear option for future customers. The ESP is an important step in ensuring that not only will safe, reliable nuclear energy be available as we plan for future growth, but we will have an electrical generating source that can produce a significant amount of electricity with no greenhouse gas emissions.

“This permit is the result of a cooperative agreement between Dominion and the U.S. Department of Energy, which shared the cost equally. The NRC gave this application a rigorous review and considered the comments it received from the public in making its final decision. We appreciate the thoroughness of the NRC staff’s work.”

An ESP is not a license to construct or operate new nuclear units at North Anna but provides a 20-year option for Dominion to consider nuclear among other potential generation sources.