Maloney Calls for Suspension of Indian Point due to Faulty Safety Components

Concerned with Public Safety, Maloney Calls for Suspension of Indian Point Unit 2, Immediate Review of Unit 3

Calls come amid reports of faulty safety components

Following public safety concerns regarding faulty baffle bolts found in Indian Point Energy Center’s Unit 2, Representative Sean Patrick Maloney (NY-18) called for a halt to efforts to restart Unit 2 until a more comprehensive review of the faulty bolts could be completed. Additionally, he called for an inspection of Unit 3. In a letter dated June 17^th, Maloney called on the Chairman of the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) to require Indian Point to discontinue use of Unit 2 until a root cause analysis that included metallurgical testing on the failed bolts was completed.  

“First and foremost we must take any safety concerns very seriously - reports of faulty baffle bolts are only the latest in a long line of incidents that show the facility is just too risky,” said Maloney. “Indian Point has no place in the long-term future of the Hudson Valley. It’s time to start winding down operations and shifting energy production to safer sources.”

"We don't know what caused the degradation of the Unit 2 reactor's baffle bolts. It may be radiation, it may be thermal stress, or it may be corrosion. If the NRC doesn't know the root cause of this failure and will not know for months, what are they doing re-opening this reactor in the near term?" said Riverkeeper President Paul Gallay.

Since joining Congress, Rep. Maloney has called for an end to operations at Indian Point responsibly, which includes safeguarding the jobs of those who work there and keeping energy prices low. On March 29, Entergy, the corporation which owns the Indian Point Nuclear Energy Center, notified the NRC of an internal review which found that 227 of 832 baffle bolts, which are crucial to the plant’s safety, were degraded or missing. In response, Rep. Maloney sent a letter to NRC Chairman Stephen Burns. A copy of the letter can be found here.