A nuclear power plant in south Carolina has been shut down indefinitely because of a leak, but the plant's operators believe the accident is too minor to inform the public, RT reported Tuesday.

VC Summer is located in Jenkinsville, south Carolina, RT said. A few weeks ago, a coolant leak was discovered at the plant, and last week, engineers were forced to shut down its only reactor for repairs.

Dominin energy, the company in charge of the plant, reportedly said no nuclear material had leaked from the plant. The company also said in a statement that the plant operator "has been monitoring a very small leak in the reactor cooling system" and that "this small leak was found in the on-site containment building and did not spread to the [outside] environment."

According to the report, the local time 11, the company spokesman Ken? Ken Holt reiterated that the failure was "minor" and posed "no danger to the public" and said that while it was not necessary to shut down activities at the plant, "the operator took the conservative decision to shut down the reactor to address the leak."

The severity of the accident was unclear, but RT said a faulty valve could be the "culprit" for the leak. "It's just a matter of time," said Tom McGuffin, a nuclear safety expert and environmental activist in south Carolina. Tom Clements, a senior executive at the plant, called dominin's "lack of transparency" a concern and said "they should inform the public that it is essential for nuclear plants to be fully open about safety-related matters." (From CNNPN)