Nuclear Regulatory Commission staff will hold a public meeting May 14 to discuss the 2023
safety performance of the Joseph M. Farley nuclear power plant. The plant, located near Dothan,
Alabama, is operated by Southern Nuclear Operating Co.
The meeting will be held from 6-7 p.m. Central time on Microsoft Teams. The conference
number for those without access to Teams is 301-576-2978, passcode 947981447#. NRC staff
responsible for plant inspections, including the resident inspectors based full-time at the site, will be
available to answer questions.
The NRC concluded that the Farley plant operated safely in 2023. However, the plant was
under increased NRC oversight for the first three quarters of the year due to a security-related
finding discovered in late 2022. Additionally, Farley Unit 1 received increased oversight during the
third and fourth quarters when the NRC found that the plant failed to promptly identify and correct
an issue that rendered one of its emergency diesel generators inoperable.
The NRC completed two supplemental inspections to review the plant’s corrective actions
for both issues and to ensure that these actions were sufficient to prevent recurrence. Following
these inspections, the plant has since returned to the normal level of NRC oversight.
The NRC Reactor Oversight Process uses color-coded inspection findings and indicators to
measure plant performance. The colors start at green and increase to white, yellow or red, equal
with the safety significance of the issues involved. If an inspection finding or performance indicator
has more than a very low safety significance, the NRC increases its oversight.
The annual assessment letter for the Farley plant, including upcoming inspection plans, is
available on the NRC website. Current performance information for the site is available on the NRC
website and updated quarterly.
