New Plant Equipment Ensures Safe and Reliable Service for Years to Come
This fall, McGuire Nuclear Station will power down one of its units as it undergoes a refueling outage. Although outages occur every 18 months and are critical to the operation of the plant, this outage is perhaps even more significant because McGuire ...
A Brief History of Nuclear Power in the U.S.
Shippingport power station was the first commercial nuclear power plant in the world. In the post-World War II era, the Atomic Energy Commission was created to explore peaceful opportunities for the same nuclear materials the U.S. used in Japan at the ...
It’s The Cool Thing to Do
The cooling tower; it's the icon of the nuclear world. It's also mistakenly thought to be spewing pollution. It's actually water vapor (or steam). Let's take a look at how cooling towers produce the water vapor you see. Thermoelectric power plants, ...
Nuclear Energy Spans the Globe
According to the U.S. Department of Energy, the United States will need 22 percent more electricity by the year 2035. Across the globe, energy consumption will increase to approximately 1,700 terawatt-hours; this is the equivalent of home electricity ...
Duke Energy and Progress Energy Merge Nuclear Fleets
On July 2, Duke Energy and Progress Energy completed their merger, making the new Duke Energy the biggest U.S. electric utility – based on market capitalization, generation capacity and number of customers. The new company will have approximately ...
Communities Reap Economic Benefits from Neighborhood Nuclear Power Plants
Nuclear energy is an excellent carbon-free electricity source important to the country’s energy mix, with 104 reactors generating 70 percent of the nation’s carbon-free electricity. What many don’t realize is that nuclear power plants play vital roles ...
Pumped-Storage Hydroelectric Energy Fills the Gap
As midnight approaches and Carolinians retire for the evening, energy consumption trails off sharply across Duke Energy’s electric generating system. Out of sight and mind, the utility’s nuclear generating fleet operates at full power night and day, ...
Decommissioning: A Safe and Systematic Process for Retiring Nuclear Plants
The Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) typically grants a license to nuclear power plants for a period of 40 years. Before the end of the original license period, the utility can seek to renew the operating license of the plant or cease operations ...
The Nuclear Renaissance Reaches Another Milestone
Last month, the NIC reported a major milestone in the nuclear renaissance: The Nuclear Regulatory Commission’s license approval of two new reactors at the Vogtle plant. Not too far behind, the V.C. Summer plant in South Carolina was recently granted ...
Power Restored at Catawba Nuclear Station
On April 4 at 8:12 p.m., Catawba Nuclear Station lost offsite power and an unusual event was declared. Power has been restored to the station and the unusual event emergency classification was terminated at 1:37 a.m. The station’s diesel generators ...