Unit 1 at the Susquehanna nuclear power plant near Berwick returned to service Wednesday morning (12/6) following a shutdown to repair the cooling system for the unit's main electrical generator.

"After the shutdown on Nov. 11, plant personnel found the repairs required more work than anticipated. The generator had to be taken apart to complete the work," said Herbert D. Woodeshick, special assistant to the president for Pennsylvania Power & Light Co., the plant's operator. "At the same time, they took advantage of the shutdown to do some normal maintenance tasks that can be done only when the unit is out of service."

Both gas and water are used to cool different parts of the generator, which is on the non-nuclear side of the plant, Woodeshick said.

At the time of the shutdown, Unit 1 had operated for 188 consecutive days since the end of its last refueling outage in May.

Unit 2 continues to operate at full power. It is in its 44th consecutive day of operation since completion of its refueling outage in October.

The Susquehanna plant, located in Luzerne County about five miles north of Berwick, is owned jointly by PP&L and Allegheny Electric Cooperative Inc.