Nuclear One inquiry done, agency says
Inspectors with the Nuclear Regulatory Commission have completed their investigation of damage done last month at Arkansas Nuclear One, Entergy Arkansas’ nuclear plant near Russellville, a commission spokesman said Thursday.
On March 31, a 550-ton piece of equipment fell as it was being moved from a non-nuclear area of the plant, resulting in the death of one worker and injury to eight others. Both nuclear reactors at the plant have been shut down since the accident.
The commission’s team is reviewing information from the investigation, said Victor Dricks, a commission spokesman.
The eight injured workers were treated and released from a nearby hospital, said Donna Gregory, a spokesman with Entergy Arkansas.
Entergy Arkansas plans to restart Unit 2 at the plant next month, Gregory said.
She was unsure when Unit 1, which was in a refueling shutdown when the accident occurred, might start up again, Gregory said.
A public meeting will be held sometime next month to provide information on the accident and answer questions, Dricks said.
- David Smith
New Acxiom service called PrivateCloud
Acxiom Corp. is now offering data-center services for businesses, the Little Rock-based company announced Thursday.
Acxiom PrivateCloud will provide customers with “security enriched” cloud computing, according to a news release.
PrivateCloud offers private data-center services and will manage firewall, vulnerability scanning and anti-virus services, according to the news release.
Companies can outsource their technology needs to Acxiom, said Scott Howe, Acxiom’s president and chief executive officer. “[Customers] can do it with us and know that their data and transactions are absolutely, completely safe.”
Acxiom is a data-mining company that collects information about people and uses to to help its customers, such as retailers, focus their advertising campaigns.
- Jessica Seaman
Index climbs 2.10 on light trading day
The Arkansas Index, a price-weighted index that tracks the largest public companies based in the state, gained 2.10 to 269.47 Thursday.
“U.S. stocks rose on Thursday as jobless claims came in lower than expected and strong earnings reports from UPS and Cliffs Natural helped to send markets higher,” said John Blackwell, senior vice president and managing director of equity trading at Stephens Inc. in Little Rock. “The Arkansas Index moved higher as 11 stocks advanced and five declined.”
Dillard’s shares gained 2.6 percent in light trading.
P.A.M. Transportation Services shares fell 5.7 percent on more than four times its average volume.
The index was developed by Bloomberg News and the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette with a base value of 100 as of Dec. 30, 1997.
Business, Pages 25 on 04/26/2013