EDISON INTERNATIONAL Media Contact: Liese Mosher, (626) 302-2255
ROSEMEAD, Calif., Aug. 1, 2014 - Southern California Edison (SCE) today asked the San Onofre Community Engagement Panelto review the formal decommissioning plan, environmental evaluation and updated cost estimate to decommission the San Onofre nuclear plant.
The draft plan, called a Post-Shutdown Decommissioning Activities Report (PSDAR), spells out the timetable for major decommissioning work expected to begin in early 2016 and indicates adequate funds exist to pay for the work. It is supported by a detailed analysis that estimates it will cost $4.4 billion to safely complete the 20-year decommissioning of San Onofre. In addition, the Environmental Impact Evaluation, which supports the PSDAR, concludes the environmental impacts of San Onofre decommissioning do not exceed those already identified in the Nuclear Regulatory Commission's generic environmental impact statement.
"We look forward to receiving feedback from the Community Engagement Panel on this blueprint for decommissioning," said Chris Thompson, SCE vice president of Decommissioning. "These key decommissioning documents given today to our community advisers embody our commitments to safety, to transparency with the public and to serving as a good steward of the environment and our customers' money."
After receiving feedback from the community panel, which plans a public meeting in about a month, SCE plans to submit the PSDAR and supporting documents to the commission, well ahead of the June 2015 deadline.
Thompson said the estimate includes the cost to decommission San Onofre Units 2 and 3, manage and store the used nuclear fuel until it is accepted by the U.S. Department of Energy, and restore the site for future use, subject to an easement agreement with the U.S. Navy, which owns the land.
The decommissioning trust funds established by San Onofre's owners now contain about $4.1 billion. Based on the updated cost estimate, anticipated cost escalation and future trust fund earnings, Thompson said, San Onofre decommissioning is now fully funded and no further customer contributions are required. Any unused funds will be returned to customers at the end of decommissioning.
The PSDAR concludes there are no significant environmental impacts posed by decommissioning San Onofre.
SCE announced June 7, 2013 that it would retire San Onofre Units 2 and 3, and begin preparations to decommission the facility. SCE has established core principles of safety, stewardship and engagement to guide decommissioning. For more information about SCE, visit www.songscommunity.com.
About Southern California Edison
An Edison International (NYSE:EIX) company, Southern California Edison is one of the nation's largest electric utilities, serving a population of nearly 14 million via 4.9 million customer accounts in a 50,000-square-mile service area within Central, Coastal and Southern California.
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