April 28, 1979

Nuclear Regulatory Comm agrees to temporary shutdown of all Babcock & Wilcox nuclear reactors after utilities agree to modify safety equipment and operating procedures; agrees to permit 2 such reactors at Oconee, SC, to continue operating for a while in order to prevent possible electric power shortages in South Carolina, North Carolina and Virginia; Babcock & Wilcox says action is unncessary, but says it is preferable to forced immediate shutdown initially recommended by comm staff; Harold R Denton of NRC and William S Lee, pres of Duke Power, operator of Oconee plants, comment; instrument failure at 3 Mile Island, Pa, plant forces Fed and utility officials to switch to different method of cooling crippled facility; some radiation escapes into atmosphere, but at apparently harmless levels; illus of Oconee plant and demonstration at Rancho Seco, Calif, plant (M)

exchange was made in secret, with even NYC Police uninformed until afterwards (M)

Council on Wage and Price Stability says that Crown Zellerbach Corp and Hammermill Paper Co are probably violating price guidelines; says both companies contest finding of 'probable noncompliane' on ground they are entitled to use exception to basic price deceleration standard known as profit-margin test (S)

Convicted Soviet spies Rudolf P Chernyayev and Valdik A Enger are freed in exchange for release of 5 dissidents from Soviet prisons; exchange takes place at Kennedy Internatl Airport, where 2 spies board Soviet airliner through front entrance while 5 dissidents leave plane through rear; release was preceded by long, difficult negotiations that began 6 mos ago; Chernyayev and Enger, former non-diplomatic employees of UN Secretariat, were arrested after trying to buy classified information on antisubmarine warfare from US naval officer (M)

Sr Rhodesian official says South Africa has offered substantial economic and military assistance to sustain new Muzorewa Govt; infers that GB and US, if they refuse to end economic sanctions and recognize Muzorewa Govt, will drive new administration into close alliance with South Africa (M)