Every nuclear plant must one day be retired and safely decommissioned. One of the conditions imposed by the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) when it issues a nuclear plant’s operating license is that the licensee commit to decommissioning the plant at some point after it permanently shuts down.

Yankee Atomic Electric Company was formed in 1954 to build one of the first commercial nuclear power electric plants in the United States. The Yankee station in Rowe, Massachusetts:

• Began commercial operation in 1961 and was permanently shut down in 1992 when the plant was determined to be no longer economically viable.



• While in operation, safely produced 44 billion kilowatt hours of electricity for New England customers.



• Physical decommissioning of the plant site was completed and approved by the NRC in 2007.



• Used fuel and Greater than Class C (GTCC) waste will continue to be stored at the site’s Independent Spent Fuel Storage Facility (ISFSI) in 16 Vertical Concrete Casks (VCC) in accordance with NRC requirements and applicable regulations until the federal government meets its statutory and contractual requirements to remove the material.