20 June 2008  Improved regulation has been good for the nuclear
industry and public safety  We have not yet discussed how U.S.
utilities dramatically improved the performance of their nuclear
plants in the last 10 years, and the role, if any, the Nuclear
Regulatory Commission (NRC) played in this improvement.  As a
result of performance gains and approved power uprates in the
last decade, the equivalent of 20 large, 1,000-megawatt plants
was added to the grid. Capacity factors, which are measures of
the relative output of power plants, have risen dramatically
from a low 70-percent fleet average to more than a 90-percent
fleet average, essentially maximum capacity.  This improved
performance occurred during a time of transition at the NRC,
when it began to focus on performance-based and risk-informed
regulation and enforcement. By focusing on the key safety
issues, the NRC gave utilities more time to concentrate on the
day-to-day business of operating and maintaining nuclear power
plants and enhancing their pe