The Nuclear Regulatory Commission has selected Phil Niebaum as
the new senior resident inspector at the Edwin I. Hatch Nuclear Plant. The
plant, operated by Southern Nuclear Operating Co., is located near Baxley,
Georgia.
Niebaum joined the NRC in 2006 as a project engineer in the Region
II office in Atlanta. He has held various positions, including resident
inspector, at the Hatch and Browns Ferry nuclear power plants near Athens,
Alabama. He served as the senior resident inspector at the Farley nuclear
power plant in Columbia, Alabama, before recently assuming the same role at
the Columbia Generating Station near Richland, Washington. Niebaum earned a bachelor's degree
in mechanical engineering from the University of Central Florida.
“I am confident that Phil's experience will make him a valuable asset to the resident
inspector office at Plant Hatch,” said NRC Region II Administrator Laura Dudes. “He has a proven
track record of success inspecting nuclear power plants for safe operation and will continue to
uphold the NRC's high standards for nuclear safety at the site.”
Niebaum joins Resident Inspector Richard Easter at Hatch. Each U.S. commercial nuclear
power plant has at least two NRC resident inspectors who monitor day-to-day operations at the
plant. They serve as the agency’s eyes and ears at the facility, conducting inspections, monitoring
significant projects, and interacting with plant workers and the public.
