Calvert Cliffs

Baltimore-based Constellation Energy Group's nuclear development arm said yesterday that it has asked state regulators for a permit to build a third reactor at Calvert Cliffs in Lusby, though the company maintains it has not yet decided to go ahead with the project. UniStar Nuclear Energy, a joint venture between Constellation and Electricite de France SA, applied to the Maryland Public Service Commission for what's called a certificate of public convenience and necessity. The PSC will coordinate a multiagency review of the project's potential impact on the environment and state infrastructure, among other things.

One of Southern Maryland's largest employers and the state's largest single power generator, Baltimore Gas and Electric Co.'s Calvert Cliffs Nuclear Power Plant is a powerful, even somewhat majestic, collection of buildings that convert the awesome force of smashed atoms to electricity.But with deregulation and competition gripping the utility industry, nuclear plants such as Calvert Cliffs will have to fight for survival, analysts caution. The unprecedented changes in the energy industry may cause nuclear plants that are unable to withstand equally awesome economic realities of the 1990s to go dark.

The Nuclear Regulatory Commission has concluded that there are no significant environmental hurdles that should trip up extension of the Calvert Cliffs nuclear power plant's license through 2036.The conclusions in the NRC's final environmental impact study regarding the power generator in Lusby help clear the way for the nation's first renewal of a nuclear plant license."The significance of the potential environmental effects of renewal of the operating license is small," the NRC wrote in its report, issued Thursday.

In MarylandCalvert Cliffs passes regulators' safety testA safety evaluation of the Calvert Cliffs nuclear power plant did not reveal any problems that would prevent renewal of the plant's operating licenses, federal regulators said yesterday."

The Nuclear Regulatory Commission will review Thursday apparent safety violations that occurred April 9 at the Calvert Cliffs nuclear power plant.No one was injured, although one person working in a high-radiation area received an "unplanned" exposure to radiation, a level the NRC says did not exceed safety limits.According to the agency, at least six workers entered a reactor cavity that day without wearing radiation monitors, as required. Four of those workers then entered a high-radiation area.

The owner of Calvert Cliffs, Maryland's aging nuclear power plant, moved forward last spring where others have hesitated, ,, becoming the first in the country to apply for renewal of its 40-year license.Not long ago, that would have meant microscope-intense scrutiny and daunting hurdles -- a complete physical to measure the health of the Lusby plant.But over the past few years, anticipating a wave of applications from the nation's aging nuclear plants, the Nuclear Regulatory -- Commission has substantially rewritten the rules to create what it describes as a "more stable and predictable" process.

The bodies of two Virginia men were found in Chesapeake Bay waters a half-mile off James Island on the Eastern Shore early yesterday after the wife of one of the men called the Coast Guard to say they were late returning from a fishing trip.Timothy D. Murray, 31, of Fairfax and Damian M. Singer, 30, of Arlington were wearing life jackets when they were found.A Coast Guard crew from the Taylors Island Station found one body near an overturned 15-foot fishing boat about 9: 30 a.m. A Maryland State Police helicopter spotted the second body nearby.

Baltimore Gas and Electric Co. abruptly shut down one of two reactors at its Calvert Cliffs Nuclear Power Plant in Lusby late Thursday, after workers discovered a leak in a steam pipe.The manual shutdown of the Unit 2 reactor marks the first time since November 1996 that the reactor has stopped operating. The automatic shutdown that occurred then stemmed from a low water level in the reactor's steam generator.BGE spokesman Karl R. Neddenien said repairs to the pipe, which is in a non-nuclear area of the plant, would take "several days."

SOLOMONS -- Federal regulators kicked off public hearings yesterday on Baltimore Gas and Electric Co.'s plan to extend the license on its Calvert Cliffs Nuclear Power Plant, amid protests from environmentalists and residents.The Maryland chapter of the Sierra Club and other groups opposed to BGE's proposal contended that the plant in Lusby poses potential environmental and safety problems and should be forced to shut down when its license to operate expires early in the next century."What we have here is an aging plant, and with it the increased likelihood that an accident will occur that should concern all Marylanders," said Glen Besa, a Sierra Club regional representative.

In a petition filed with the Nuclear Regulatory Commission, a national watchdog group is seeking to block renewal of an operating license for Calvert Cliffs Nuclear Power Plant.The Lusby plant, which is operated by Baltimore Gas and Electric Co., in April became the first nuclear plant in the country to apply for renewal of its 40-year license. Any potential challenges might set precedents, and all aspects of the process are being closely watched in the industry.Under an order signed by the NRC yesterday, a panel must decide within 90 days whether the National Whistleblower Center, which filed its petition Aug. 7, qualifies to intervene in the renewal.

Constellation Energy Group warned state regulators on Monday that imposing costly conditions on its deal with a French utility could scuttle the $4.5 billion transaction and jeopardize a multibillion-dollar project to build the first nuclear reactor in the state since the 1970s. Baltimore-based Constellation has been under pressure by Gov. Martin O'Malley to provide one-time credits to customers that could amount to more than $200 per household and to agree to other concessions. The company owns Baltimore Gas and Electric Co., which serves more than 1.1 million residential customers in Maryland.

The Calvert County Board of County Commissioners has gone on record numerous times in support of the proposed expansion at Constellation Energy's Calvert Cliffs nuclear power plant. We take the decision to support the expansion seriously. We have weighed the impact of the project on our community based upon the plant's 30-year safe operating history, and we have considered the energy issues facing Maryland and the nation. The board testified before the Maryland Public Service Commission Sept.

Maryland's Public Service Commission faces a major test of its independence and wisdom as a regulator in its decision whether to approve the proposed purchase by Electricit? de France of nearly half of Constellation Energy Group's nuclear holdings. Gov. Martin O'Malley, who appointed or re-appointed the PSC members, has signaled extreme skepticism of the deal, including in an op-ed Wednesday in The Baltimore Sun in which he claimed the deal held "no real benefits" for Baltimore Gas & Electric ratepayers.

After a long week of grueling testimony on Constellation Energy Group's proposed nuclear joint venture with a French partner, the regulatory review will continue into next week, a hurdle that both companies had not expected when they signed the deal last year. The state Public Service Commission heard from more than 10 witnesses in late-night sessions on whether the $4.5 billion sale of nearly half of Constellation's nuclear power business to Electricite de France would hurt Constellation's regulated utility, Baltimore Gas and Electric Co., and its customers.

The debate over Constellation Energy Group's proposal to sell almost half of its nuclear power business to a French-owned utility continued Thursday night in Baltimore. Supporters and opponents of the deal both claimed to represent the best interests of Maryland's financial, energy and environmental future. Employees of Constellation and its subsidiary, Baltimore Gas and Electric Co., filled at least a third of the seats in the room and applauded heartily as their speakers argued that the $4.5 billion deal would ensure the future health and growth of the company and its value as a corporate citizen of Maryland.

Nearly a year ago, Constellation Energy Group was fighting for its very existence as a credit crisis during the financial sector meltdown pushed the company to the verge of bankruptcy. On Monday, the Baltimore company faced a different fight: trying to convince Maryland energy regulators that a proposed $4.5 billion deal to sell half of its nuclear power business to a French utility is in the public's best interest. "We hope the commission will see the tremendous benefits, both short- and long-term, that will flow to the state of Maryland as a result of the joint venture," Constellation spokesman Rob Gould said.

A mostly tidy little stand-off the other night over expanding Constellation Energy's nuclear power complex at Calvert Cliffs was interrupted with the heretical suggestion that the region doesn't need all that new power from any source - or the expanded ability to deliver it. This suggestion comes despite rapid growth in the Mid-Atlantic that has choked electricity transmission lines and invoked predictions of rolling brown-outs within the next several years....

There are few things that would do more to stimulate job growth and increase the competitiveness of Maryland businesses than to increase investment in conservation and new sources of affordable, clean energy that will hasten our transition to a low-carbon economy. Constellation Energy and Baltimore Gas and Electric (BGE), our utility subsidiary, have introduced Smart Grid technology and other programs aimed at helping customers reduce demand in exchange for significant rebates. These initiatives await state approval, but finishing the job of meeting the region's escalating energy needs will also require massive private investment in new sources of emissions-free generation.

Supporters and opponents of Constellation Energy Group's nuclear deal with a French utility showed up in force at a public hearing Wednesday, signaling how contentious the transaction has become as regulators examine the agreement. The hearing in Annapolis is the first of three session to solicit public comment that are part of a regulatory review before the Maryland Public Service Commission. The PSC is determining whether Constellation's $4.5 billion deal to sell half its nuclear power business to Electricite de France is in the public interest.

Annapolis motorcyclist killed in crash Saturday An Annapolis man was killed Saturday night when the motorcycle he was riding crossed the center line of Deale Churchton Road in Deale and struck a car going in the other direction, Anne Arundel County police said. Todd Douglas Bausum, 47, of 570 Bellerive Drive was pronounced dead at the scene when police responded about 8:38 p.m. Police said an 18-year-old woman driving the other vehicle involved in the accident, a 2007 Chevrolet Cobalt, complained of minor injuries but refused medical attention.