The Nuclear Regulatory Commission has updated and renewed the certification of Westinghouse’s AP1000 reactor design, incorporating lessons from the construction and operation of units 3&4 at the Vogtle NPP in Georgia into the certified design.
The action gives future applicants a standardised, field-proven AP1000 design that reflects how the reactors were constructed and operated. It is intended to reduce duplicative regulatory reviews, lower licensing costs and help future AP1000 projects move through the NRC’s licensing process more efficiently.
However, Vogtle 3&4, which began operation in 2023 and 2024 were delayed by seven years with costs doubling to over $30bn. The severe delays and cost overruns were primarily driven by the complexities of dealing with First-of-a-Kind (FOAK) reactor components, widespread supply chain and manufacturing defects, and the cascading financial fallout that led to Westinghouse’s 2017 bankruptcy.
During the construction and startup of Vogtle 3&4, NRC reviewed and approved nearly 200 licence amendments. By incorporating applicable design changes and lessons learned from that experience into the renewed certification, NRC said future AP1000 applicants can reference an updated design rather than seeking separate approval for changes the NRC has already evaluated.
“The NRC’s approval of the updated AP1000 design provides the regulatory foundation for America to move from building individual reactors to deploying them at scale,” NRC Chairman Ho K Nieh noted. “This is how safety-focused, enabling regulation reduces regulatory uncertainty and investment risk.”
The renewed certification extends the AP1000 design’s validity to 2066. Future applicants will still be required to obtain NRC approval for site-specific environmental, safety and security considerations. The new certification does not authorise the siting, construction or operation of any facility.
This will become effective on 28 December, unless significant adverse comments are received by 13 November. If the direct final rule is withdrawn as a result of such comments, timely notice of the withdrawal will be published in the Federal Register.
