Planning study and economic feasibility for extended life operation of light water reactor plants

The purpose of this planning study was to perform an assessment of the engineering and economic feasibility of extended life operation of present nuclear power plant units and to recommend future programs that may be warranted by the feasibility assessments. This effort concludes, essentially, that there is sufficient economic motivation for refurbishment to warrant more extensive examination for present plants and to identify possible design modifications that would facilitate extended service life in future plants. The costs of replacing the deterioration-prone equipment in a nuclear power plant appear to represent a small portion of the total plant costs, provided downtime is not excessive. A refurbishment and economic analysis is presented