Page 112 - Nuclear Plant Journal November-December 2012
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Product & Service Directory–2013
112
An Industry
Frontrunner
By Donna Gregory, Entergy Nuclear.
Donna Gregory
Donna Gregory is a senior
communications specialist with over
27 years of
experience in the
nuclear industry
beginning with
Entergy in 1985 at
Arkansas Nuclear
One. Prior to her
communications
position,
Gregory worked
in planning,
scheduling
and outages
department;
multi-media;
and in Entergy’s
Continuous
Improvement
program.
Gregory has a bachelor’s degree
in journalism from Arkansas Tech
University and a master’s degree
in operations management from the
University of Arkansas at Fayetteville.
Leading in the Arkansas
River Valley
Arkansas Nuclear One (ANO) is a
two-reactor site located in Russellville,
Arkansas. On December 19, 1974, ANO,
Unit 1 began commercial operations and
less than six years later, on March 26,
1980, the ANO, Unit 2 began generating
electricity for the state of Arkansas. To-
gether, the plants supply 1,823megawatts
of power, which is equal to approximately
25 percent of the total energy demand of
the state.
In 1974, local newspaper reports
recalled that the decision to build the two-
unit nuclear plant near Russellville was
the “greatest thing in the Arkansas River
Valley.” Arkansas
Nuclear One pro-
vides jobs to more
than 1000 people
in the River Valley
area. In 2009, ANO
celebrated 35 years
of providing safe, re-
liable and affordable
power to the people
of Arkansas.
Quick Facts:
ANO, Unit 1 is
a pressurized water
reactor,Babcockand
Wilcox, producing
836 megawatts. The
ANO Unit 1 license
expiration date is May 20, 2034.
ANO, Unit 2 is a pressurized water
reactor, Combustion Engineering, pro-
ducing 987 megawatts. The ANO Unit 2
expiration date is July 17, 2038.
ANO employs approximately 950
people. During 2011, environmental
emissions avoided due to nuclear power
plant operation in Arkansas included
16,000 tons of sulfur dioxide, 10,000 tons
of nitrogen oxide and 10 million metric
tons of CO
2
.
Notables at a Glance
In 2001, the NRC granted a 20-year
license renewal toArkansas Nuclear One,
Unit 1, positioning Entergy as an industry
frontrunner in license renewal and setting
thepace for additional renewal efforts.The
expiration date is May 2034.
The ANO, Unit 1 license renewal
application took the NRC less than 17
months to review and approve, the short-
est time of any review to date. Entergy,
as an industry leader in license renewal
processes, offering services to the nuclear
industry with an expert national licensing
team in Arkansas.
In 2003,ANO, Unit 2’s refueling out-
age was the quickest in the site’s history
and a world record for nuclear reactors
of that design.
In June 2005 Entergy received the
20-year license renewal to ANO, Unit 2.
The expiration date is July 2038.
2011 saw a record performance:
ANO, Unit 1 completed its longest run
ever at 538 days of being online, produc-
ing electricity.
One of Entergy’s core values is a
commitment to help the communities we
serve, and ANO employees maintain a
strong presence in Russellville and the
surrounding Arkansas River Valley area.
Currently, ANO employees and retirees
are heavily involved in building the first
Habitat for Humanity home in the River
Valley Area. The 2012 Boy Scout Merit
Badge University at ANO left little doubt
that the annual event has become a state-
wide favorite. Scheduled to coincide
each year with National Engineer Week,
attendance exceeded 250, the largest
since the University was launched in
2004. Other major community initiatives
includeValleyFestwhich supportsBoys&
Girls Clubs, the River ValleyArts Center,
Community Scholarship Fund, quarterly
Red Cross blood drives and River Valley
Heart Walk. The employees at ANO had
another successful UnitedWay campaign
surpassing their goal and raising$100,617.
This amount is matched dollar-for-dollar
by Entergy making the total contribu-
tion to the Russellville United Way over
$201,000.
Leading the Nuclear
Industry
In 2010 Arkansas Nuclear One
received “Nuclear Project of the Year”
honors from Power Engineering for their
industry innovation, “Next Generation
Tungsten Shielding and Tungsten Vest.”
Made with a flexible polymer immersed
with tungsten, the shielding has magnets
