DOE Launches Program to Support U.S. Nuclear Uprates, Restarts

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Written by Eric Funderburk for IIR News Intelligence (Sugar Land, Texas)

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Summary

Last week, the U.S. Department of Energy launched at program aimed at facilitating power uprates at operational nuclear power plants as well as the restart of idled plants.

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UPRISE Program Announced

Late last week, the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) announced the Utility Power Reactor Incremental Scaling Effort (UPRISE), which "strives to significantly expand the United States' nuclear energy capacity by increasing the power output of existing reactors, bringing dormant facilities back online, and completing stalled projects."

The amount of funding available through the UPRISE program appears open-ended, with the DOE noting in a related press release that its Office of Nuclear Energy and Office of Energy Dominance Financing (EDF) "has more than $289 billion in available loan authority and is able to provide up to 80 percent financing for eligible project costs associated with nuclear uprates at attractive interest rates."

The DOE said its loan facilities were instrumental in helping facilitate work on the last reactors constructed in the U.S., Plant Vogtle units 3 and 4 in Georgia, and has been used to support the current restart operations of two existing plants.

Plant Restarts

Those active restarts include the resumption of operations at the Palisades nuclear power plant in Michigan and the Crane Clean Energy Center in Pennsylvania. Palisades was purchased by Holtec International after the plant was closed by Entergy for economic reasons. In the face of strongly increasing U.S. power demand, particularly for emissions-free energy, Holtec's initial plan to decommission the plant shifted to a plan to restart it. Despite a few setbacks along the way, those activities are drawing to a close and the plant is expected begin providing more than 800 megawatts (MW) to the Michigan grid in the coming months.

The Crane Clean Energy Center (formerly Three Mile Island, Unit 1) was shuttered in 2019 for economic reasons, but an intended restart was announced by owner Constellation Energy in 2024 as Microsoft signed a 20-year power purchase agreement for all of the reactor's 835 MW of power, which is expected to begin flowing again next year. Subscribers to Industrial Info's Global Market Intelligence (GMI) Project Database can learn more by viewing the reports on the Palisades and Crane projects.

NextEra Energy also is making moves to restart the Duane Arnold nuclear power plant in Iowa, and while the DOE's announcement of the UPRISE program didn't single out that project as being available for funding, it was mentioned by Rian Bahran, the DOE's deputy assistant secretary for nuclear Energy, in interview with POWER Magazine. Bahran said Duane Arnold was being watched by the DOE as a restart candidate, but declined to mention any other plants beyond the Iowa facility, Crane Clean Energy and Palisades. The Duane Arnold plant, which ceased operations a couple of months ahead of its planned closure in 2020 following severe storm damage, could once again provide its approximately 600 MW of power to the grid in the near future if NextEra proceeds with the project, which appears likely. Subscribers can click here to learn more about the restart project.

Potential Uprates

The list of potential nuclear uprates in the U.S. being tracked by Industrial Info is more extensive, accounting for potential projects affecting around 26 reactors at 14 plants, with more possible on the way. The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission classifies uprate projects into three categories, with the smallest type, measure uncertainty recapture (MUR) uprates, increasing power by 2% or less, and maxing out at the more extensive extended power uprates (EPUs), which involve major equipment upgrades such as turbine and/or generator replacements, and can grow a unit's power by around 20%.

The tracked uprates are spread throughout the U.S., with planned uprate projects totaling more than $2 billion each for the Mid-Atlantic region, led primarily by Duke Energy, and the Northeast region, which includes the possible uprates of four reactors at two plants in Pennsylvania and New Jersey.

One of the most extensive planned uprates will be an extended power uprate planned for the single-unit, Columbia nuclear power plant in Richland, Washington. As plans stand, in 2027 plant owner Energy Northwest would begin the first of four phases to boost the power of the 1,210-MW reactor, completing the final fourth stage of the EPU in 2033. Each phase would add an incremental 64 MW of generating capacity, ultimately boosting the plant's capacity by more than 250 MW, or around 21%. Subscribers can learn more by viewing the related project reports.

The Goals of UPRISE

The UPRISE program is meant to help achieve the Trump administration's long-term goal of boosting U.S. nuclear capacity from around 100 gigawatts (GW) at present to 400 GW by 2050. Focusing more on the near-term, the initiative is aiming to help achieve 2.5 GW of additional nuclear capacity by 2027 and 5 GW of total capacity added by 2029. The DOE said that this year it will begin to "convene match-making workshops to facilitate collaborative agreements between nuclear power plant owners and end users" under the program.

Key Takeaways

• The Department of Energy recently announced the UPRISE program, which aims to facilitate the restart of idled nuclear reactors as well as the uprates of operational units in the U.S.
• Two restart projects are underway at idled U.S. nuclear plants, with a third project in Iowa receiving serious consideration from owner NextEra Energy.
• UPRISE's near-term goals are to help achieve an additional 2.5 GW of U.S. nuclear generation by 2027 and a total of 5 GW added by 2029.

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About IIR News Intelligence
IIR News Intelligence is a trusted source of news for the industrial process and energy markets, powered by Industrial Info Resources' Global Market Intelligence (GMI).

About Industrial Info Resources
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 250,000 current and future projects worth $30.2 Trillion (USD).