Columbia Generating Station successfully reconnected to the Pacific Northwest’s power grid on June 16 completing its biennial refueling outage, Energy Northwest reported.
Over the last two months, workers completed thousands of tasks and projects, including installing a new adjustable speed drive system, repairing the circulating water basin, electrical generator inspection, and replacing a reactor recirculation pump and motor.
Crews also replaced 256 of the 764 nuclear fuel assemblies in Columbia’s reactor core with fresh fuel.
The plant has a generation capacity of 1,207 megawatts (gross).
“The work accomplished during this outage enhances Columbia’s reliability and strengthens our mission to provide carbon-free, cost-effective energy,” said Energy Northwest CEO Bob Schuetz. “The team completed an impressive amount of work, and we’re pleased to once again be producing much-needed electricity for the region.”
Columbia, which is owned by Energy Northwest, is taken offline every two years for refueling, during which fresh nuclear fuel is added to its reactor core so that it can operate for a two-year cycle.
Used fuel assemblies from the reactor core, having been in use for six years, are transferred to the adjacent used fuel pool, where they will remain until being moved to Columbia’s on-site dry cask storage. Refueling outages also provide the opportunity to conduct maintenance tasks that can only be performed when the reactor is offline.
Energy Northwest and the Bonneville Power Administration strategically schedule the biennial refueling to align with spring snowmelt and runoff, maximizing hydroelectric output while minimizing the impact of taking Columbia offline.
The electricity generated at Columbia Generating Station, located 10 miles north of Richland, is sold at cost to BPA.
Energy Northwest and BPA said that BPA on May 20 approved implementation of an Extended Power Uprate project that increases the output of Columbia Generating Station, which is the Pacific Northwest’s third largest generating resource and only operating nuclear energy plant.
The EPU is an approximately $700 million project that will increase the station's electrical output by 162 megawatts by 2031.
