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Released August 28, 2025 | SUGAR LAND
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Researched by Industrial Info Resources (Sugar Land, Texas)--The U.S. Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) has granted NextEra Energy Incorporated (Juno Beach, Florida) a waiver that will allow the company to pursue the restart of its Duane Arnold nuclear power plant in Palo, Iowa, which was shuttered in 2020 for economic reasons.
The Duane Arnold plant began operating in 1975. The single-reactor facility is Iowa's only nuclear power plant and had a generating capacity of slightly more than 600 megawatts (MW). NextEra acquired a 70% stake in the plant in 2006, which it still holds, along with Central Iowa Power Cooperative (Cedar Rapids, Iowa) and Corn Belt Power Cooperative (Humboldt, Iowa), which hold 20% and 10%, respectively. NextEra announced that it would close the plant for economic reasons in October 2020, an event that was hastened a couple of months by a derecho that extensively damaged the cooling towers.
After the plant's closure, NextEra made plans to repurpose the existing transmission interconnections for a series of solar projects. Two of these were completed in 2024, and NextEra has obtained permission for further solar development using the interconnection. When area power use began increasing due to, among other things, new energy-intensive data centers coming online, NextEra, along with other companies throughout the U.S., began considering the economics of restarting Duane Arnold, keeping the same interconnection that was allotted to solar development, presenting a dilemma that potentially could have cost valuable time in further applications and permitting.
FERC has eased this problem by issuing a waiver that allows NextEra to consolidate these interconnection rights for nuclear and solar using the Midcontinent Independent System Operator's (MISO) generating facility replacement process to replace existing generation with newer, more efficient facilities without having the go through the full interconnection permitting process again. Without the waiver, NextEra would have to submit a new interconnection request and be subject to a potential multiyear study process. The new interconnection agreement allows for Duane Arnold's prior 600-619 MW of generation, with a commercial operating deadline of December 31, 2029, versus October 29, 2026, which was originally allotted to the solar plants.
The 2029 deadline gives NextEra a bit of "wiggle room" in regard to starting the plant. While the company thinks Duane Arnold could be restarted in 2028, NextEra allowed extra time for permitting from the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, which includes safety inspections, environmental assessments and public engagement, as well as potential delays in receiving necessary parts and equipment. Modifications to be made include new cooling towers, a sewage treatment system upgrade, dredging of the plant's water intake from the Cedar River and more. In addition, permits for water use, wastewater, air and hazardous waste must be obtained.
In its order, FERC noted that NextEra planned to spend between $50 million and $100 million this year to facilitate the plant's operation by 2028 or 2029. Subscribers to Industrial Info's Global Market Intelligence (GMI) Power Project Database can learn more by viewing the project report on the restart.
NextEra's Duane Arnold plant joins two other shuttered U.S. nuclear power plants to be restarted: Holtec International's (Jupiter, Florida) 812-MW Palisades plant (see project report) in Michigan and Constellation Energy Corporation's (Baltimore, Maryland) 835-MW Unit 1 at the former Three Mile Island plant (now the Crane Clean Energy Center) in Pennsylvania (see related project reports.)
In a July conference call, NextEra Chief Executive Officer John Ketchum referred to these three projects as "unicorn-type opportunities," noting NextEra was in talks with potential customers, including data centers, that could benefit from the plant's steady supply of baseload power. And like other states, data centers are arriving in Iowa in droves. Industrial Info is tracking 10 data center projects currently under construction in the state, valued at $4.6 billion, and a whopping 56 data center projects valued at more than $26.8 billion in the planning or engineering stages, although not all of these will be built. These and other high-power-using facilities will significantly alter Iowa's power landscape, paving the way for the more than 600 MW in steady power supply that Duane Arnold will be able to provide once again.
Industrial Info Resources (IIR) is the leading provider of industrial market intelligence. Since 1983, IIR has provided comprehensive research, news and analysis on the industrial process, manufacturing and energy related industries. IIR's Global Market Intelligence (GMI) helps companies identify and pursue trends across multiple markets with access to real, qualified and validated plant and project opportunities. Across the world, IIR is tracking over 200,000 current and future projects worth $17.8 trillion (USD).
The Duane Arnold plant began operating in 1975. The single-reactor facility is Iowa's only nuclear power plant and had a generating capacity of slightly more than 600 megawatts (MW). NextEra acquired a 70% stake in the plant in 2006, which it still holds, along with Central Iowa Power Cooperative (Cedar Rapids, Iowa) and Corn Belt Power Cooperative (Humboldt, Iowa), which hold 20% and 10%, respectively. NextEra announced that it would close the plant for economic reasons in October 2020, an event that was hastened a couple of months by a derecho that extensively damaged the cooling towers.
After the plant's closure, NextEra made plans to repurpose the existing transmission interconnections for a series of solar projects. Two of these were completed in 2024, and NextEra has obtained permission for further solar development using the interconnection. When area power use began increasing due to, among other things, new energy-intensive data centers coming online, NextEra, along with other companies throughout the U.S., began considering the economics of restarting Duane Arnold, keeping the same interconnection that was allotted to solar development, presenting a dilemma that potentially could have cost valuable time in further applications and permitting.
FERC has eased this problem by issuing a waiver that allows NextEra to consolidate these interconnection rights for nuclear and solar using the Midcontinent Independent System Operator's (MISO) generating facility replacement process to replace existing generation with newer, more efficient facilities without having the go through the full interconnection permitting process again. Without the waiver, NextEra would have to submit a new interconnection request and be subject to a potential multiyear study process. The new interconnection agreement allows for Duane Arnold's prior 600-619 MW of generation, with a commercial operating deadline of December 31, 2029, versus October 29, 2026, which was originally allotted to the solar plants.
The 2029 deadline gives NextEra a bit of "wiggle room" in regard to starting the plant. While the company thinks Duane Arnold could be restarted in 2028, NextEra allowed extra time for permitting from the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, which includes safety inspections, environmental assessments and public engagement, as well as potential delays in receiving necessary parts and equipment. Modifications to be made include new cooling towers, a sewage treatment system upgrade, dredging of the plant's water intake from the Cedar River and more. In addition, permits for water use, wastewater, air and hazardous waste must be obtained.
In its order, FERC noted that NextEra planned to spend between $50 million and $100 million this year to facilitate the plant's operation by 2028 or 2029. Subscribers to Industrial Info's Global Market Intelligence (GMI) Power Project Database can learn more by viewing the project report on the restart.
NextEra's Duane Arnold plant joins two other shuttered U.S. nuclear power plants to be restarted: Holtec International's (Jupiter, Florida) 812-MW Palisades plant (see project report) in Michigan and Constellation Energy Corporation's (Baltimore, Maryland) 835-MW Unit 1 at the former Three Mile Island plant (now the Crane Clean Energy Center) in Pennsylvania (see related project reports.)
In a July conference call, NextEra Chief Executive Officer John Ketchum referred to these three projects as "unicorn-type opportunities," noting NextEra was in talks with potential customers, including data centers, that could benefit from the plant's steady supply of baseload power. And like other states, data centers are arriving in Iowa in droves. Industrial Info is tracking 10 data center projects currently under construction in the state, valued at $4.6 billion, and a whopping 56 data center projects valued at more than $26.8 billion in the planning or engineering stages, although not all of these will be built. These and other high-power-using facilities will significantly alter Iowa's power landscape, paving the way for the more than 600 MW in steady power supply that Duane Arnold will be able to provide once again.
Industrial Info Resources (IIR) is the leading provider of industrial market intelligence. Since 1983, IIR has provided comprehensive research, news and analysis on the industrial process, manufacturing and energy related industries. IIR's Global Market Intelligence (GMI) helps companies identify and pursue trends across multiple markets with access to real, qualified and validated plant and project opportunities. Across the world, IIR is tracking over 200,000 current and future projects worth $17.8 trillion (USD).
