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SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION
WASHINGTON, D.C. 20549
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FORM 8-K
CURRENT REPORT
PURSUANT TO SECTIONS 13 OR 15(D) OF THE
SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE ACT OF 1934
Date of Report (Date of earliest event reported) May 29, 1996
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DELMARVA POWER & LIGHT COMPANY
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(Exact Name of Registrant as Specified in Charter)
Delaware and Virginia I-1405 51-0084283
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(State or Other Jurisdiction (Commission (IRS Employer
of Incorporation) File Number) Identification No.)
800 King Street, P.O. Box 231, Wilmington, Delaware 19899
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(Address of Principal Executive Offices) (Zip Code)
Registrant's Telephone Number, Including Area Code 302-429-3448
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None
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(Former Name or Former Address, if Changed Since Last Report)
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Item 5. Other Events
The following information updates matters related to Salem Units 1 and
2 previously reported under "Item 1--Business" of Part I of Delmarva Power
& Light Company's (the Company) 1995 Annual Report on Form 10-K, and "Item
5--Other Information" of Part II of the Company's Report on Form 10-Q for
the quarter ended March 31, 1996. The following is excerpted from
information reported in a news release dated May 23, 1996, by Public
Service Electric and Gas Company (PSE&G), the operator of the facility
referred to below, which press release was included in a Current Report on
Form 8-K filed by PSE&G on May 24, 1996.
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PSE&G, CO-OWNERS TO PURCHASE STEAM GENERATORS FOR
SALEM UNIT 1 FROM UNFINISHED SEABROOK NUCLEAR PLANT
Public Service Electric and Gas Company (PSE&G) and the co-
owners of the Salem Nuclear Generating Station will purchase
unused steam generators from the unfinished Seabrook unit 2
nuclear power plant in New Hampshire for installation in Salem
Unit 1. PSE&G, operator of the nuclear facility and co-owners
PECO Energy Company, Atlantic Electric Company, and Delmarva
Power [&] Light Company, jointly announced this agreement today.
By using these steam generators, PSE&G stated that it
expects to return Salem 1 to operation in the second quarter of
1997. Salem Unit 2 is on schedule for return to service on Aug.
27, 1996. The return to service of both units is subject to
Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) concurrence.
"With this steam generator strategy, we believe we will be
able to keep Salem 1 on track in our initiative to assure that
our nuclear units operate at a high level of excellence, in terms
of safety, reliability, and sustained performance," said Leon
Eliason, president of PSE&G's Nuclear Business Unit. "We are
fortunate that the Seabrook steam generators are available and
are technically and economically feasible."
The two units at Salem have been out of service since May 16
and June 7, 1995, respectively. Since that time, PSE&G has been
engaged in a thorough reassessment of the plants' equipment, work
processes, and personnel. In February, tests indicated
microscopic cracks in steam generator tubes at Salem Unit 1.
PSE&G has been conducting additional inspections and analysis to
determine whether the steam generators should be repaired or
replaced. In April, [PSE&G] announced that it had identified
options that could make a return to service in the first half of
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1997 a possibility. The decision to replace the steam
generators, Eliason said, proved the best option from both an
operational and financial perspective.
PSE&G plans to purchase four Westinghouse Model F steam
generators that had been installed in the Seabrook 2 nuclear
station, which was never completed and is now owned by Northeast
Utilities and 10 other co-owners. [The steam generators] will be
shipped primarily by barge and are expected to arrive at the
Salem site before the end of the year.
PSE&G estimates that purchasing and installing existing
steam generators is expected to cost between $150 million and
$170 million. . . .
Steam generators are large heat exchangers in which hot
water from the reactor passes through tubes and converts
surrounding water into steam that drives the unit's turbines to
produce electricity. Each existing Salem unit steam generator
contains 3,388 U-shaped tubes about 40-feet high and 7/8-inch in
diameter.
Westinghouse's Model F steam generator is a newer technology
than the model [it] will replace. Model F steam generator tubes
are made out of heat-treated Inconel and they are performing well
in nuclear plants throughout the world.
The Salem station consists of two 1,100-megawatt pressurized
water nuclear reactors located along the Delaware River in Salem
County, NJ. PSE&G operates the station and owns 42.59% of the
facility. The other co-owners are PECO Energy Company, which
owns 42.59%, and Atlantic Electric Company and Delmarva Power [&]
Light Company, which each own 7.41%. . . .
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SIGNATURE
Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934,
the Registrant has duly caused this report to be signed on its behalf by
the undersigned hereunto duly authorized.
Delmarva Power & Light Company
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(Registrant)
Date: May 29, 1996 /s/B. S. GRAHAM
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Barbara S. Graham
Senior Vice President,
Treasurer and
Chief Financial Officer
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