In August, crews began putting new radioactive fuel into the reactor vessel itself, during which a piece of machinery called a fuel assembly handler caused one of the assemblies to be tilted.

This temporarily paused the refueling process.

Nick Culp, Sr. Manager, Government Affairs and Communications for Holtec Palisades, released the following statement:

"The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission recently completed its review and approval of our License Amendment Request, approving the methodology by which we are recovering the affected assembly.

We appreciate the NRC’s review and approval of the LAR. The LAR review determined the fuel transfer canister that was specifically designed to accommodate the assembly, and the proposed recovery approach was supported by engineering evaluations addressing structural integrity, fuel handling, thermal conditions, and radiation protection. The recovery method and associated engineering evaluations are addressed in our LAR.

Our focus remains on safely completing the remaining activities necessary to return Palisades to service. Palisades will return to service when all required work is complete, and all federal requirements and industry standards are met.

While fuel loading was temporarily paused, substantial work continues across Palisades in support of the restart, including remaining equipment maintenance, system testing and surveillances, training, and operational readiness activities. These efforts are preparing the plant for the remaining phases of restart, including reactor startup, synchronization to the electrical grid, and continued testing and power ascension toward full operation. Our team of more than 1,000 nuclear professionals continues this work in parallel with the fuel assembly recovery effort."