Bridgman, MI – This week, a three-person team from the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) is conducting a special inspection at the Cook nuclear power plant in Bridgman. The investigation follows a series of diesel generator failures that occurred during routine testing.
Prema Chandrathil, an NRC spokesperson, confirmed that the Cook plant is equipped with four diesel generators designed to ensure continuous operation of essential functions in the event of an external power outage. Although only one of these generators is necessary for maintaining critical safety functions, all four have failed a total of four times during tests over the past two years. The NRC aims to determine the root cause of these failures.
“Special inspections are part of our standard procedures,” Chandrathil explained. “We initiate them to gain a comprehensive understanding of technical issues, including the circumstances surrounding the failures, the corrective actions taken by the plant, and measures to prevent future occurrences.”
In addition to the primary four generators, the Cook plant also has two backup generators on site. This additional redundancy is in compliance with NRC regulations.
Chandrathil emphasized that despite the generator failures, the Cook plant has not been deemed unsafe. The inspection team is evaluating the situation with expertise in electrical and mechanical engineering as well as plant system interactions. A detailed report will be released approximately 45 days after the inspection’s conclusion.
The NRC inspection is scheduled to wrap up by Friday. Cook plant representatives have declined to comment on the situation at this time. The generator failures include one incident in 2022, another in 2023, and two occurrences within this year.
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