But amid the COVID-19 pandemic, operators have had to restructure this spring’s refueling for Millstone’s Unit 2 reactor to ensure the safety of both resident and visiting workers. That effort will include social distancing protocols but should be carried out successfully, Millstone spokesman Ken Holt said, as workers at the plant already have been practicing social distancing over the past several weeks. Holt said last week no employee at the plant has tested positive for COVID-19, the disease caused by the virus. Millstone provides enough energy to power 2.1 million homes and currently employs about 900 workers, he said. The refueling process, which may require employees to be in close quarters with one another, involves shutting down the reactor and removing and replacing 65 to 70 of the reactor’s fuel assemblies, which Holt said are 8 by 8 inches wide and 14 feet long and made up of bundled fuel rods of uranium oxide pellets.
https://www.theday.com/local-news/20200414/millstone-moving-forward-with-reactor-refueling-amid-covid-19-pandemic