Oyster Creek still shut down

by: Jason Springer

Mon Dec 01, 2008 at 05:44:21 PM EST

The Oyster Creek Nuclear Generating Station remains shut down following a weekend problem with one of its two main electrical transformers.

Just after 9 p.m. Friday, an electrical fault occurred in one of the transformers that converts Oyster Creek's output for use on the grid that serves the region.

That caused the plant to shut down automatically.

Oyster Creek is the oldest nuclear reactor in the country having opened in 1969.  It's license expires in April of 2009 and Excelon has been trying to renew their license with the Nuclear Regulatory Commission for another twenty years since 2005.