Susquehanna nuclear plant unit shuts down for scheduled maintenance

PPL Corp. announced last week that it disconnected one of its units at the company’s Susquehanna nuclear power plant for routine maintenance.

Workers will replace about 40 percent of Unit 2’s uranium fuel and perform several maintenance tasks and upgrades on its equipment. Unit 1 at the plant continues to operate at full power.

PPL schedules refueling and maintenance on its plants before summer, when electricity use increases as outside temperatures rise. The work on the two units at the Susquehanna plant is done every 24 months. The local community benefits economically from the shutdown because about 1,000 contract worker are hired to help with the project.