U.S. nuclear plant V.C. Summer receives approval for 80 years of operation

The U.S. nuclear regulator has extended the operating license for Unit 1 at the V.C. Summer nuclear power plant. The 1003 MW nuclear unit has been generating electricity since it was connected to the grid in 1982. The regulator had previously extended its originally planned 40-year operating life by 20 years. The latest 20-year license extension will allow the plant to operate until 2062. Two other nuclear units are under construction at V.C. Summer, but the owner halted work in 2017 after Westinghouse went bankrupt.

The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) announced that it had extended the operating license for the V.C. Summer nuclear unit by another 20 years. This is the second license extension, giving the plant’s only operating unit the option to remain in service until 2062. The plant’s operator applied for the license extension in August 2023.

“Given steady population growth and economic development, South Carolina will continue to need a clean and reliable workhorse like V.C. Summer to provide uninterrupted power to our customers’ homes and businesses in the years ahead,” said Eric Carr, CEO of Dominion Energy.

The pressurized water reactor has a capacity of 1003 MW (gross) / 966 MW (net). Construction began in 1973, and the unit was connected to the grid in 1982, just under 10 years later. It officially entered commercial operation on January 1, 1984.

“The NRC’s review of Dominion Energy South Carolina’s application to extend the operating period from 60 to 80 years took place in two parts. The first was a safety review and the second an environmental impact statement,” the NRC said in its announcement.

V.C. Summer Unit 1 has now joined 12 other U.S. nuclear units whose licenses the regulator has extended to 80 years. At least four more units are undergoing NRC approval.

Two units under construction

Two more Westinghouse AP1000 nuclear units were under construction at V.C. Summer between 2013 and 2017. Under the original plan, Units 2 and 3 were due to begin generating electricity in 2017 and 2018, but Westinghouse postponed those dates during construction, pushing them back to 2020. When Westinghouse filed for bankruptcy in March 2017, the owners began considering whether to complete the units. Construction on both units was halted in July 2017.

In 2021, Westinghouse agreed to use components from the units under construction in the construction of nuclear units at Ukraine’s Khmelnytskyi Nuclear Power Plant. Westinghouse is expected to build two AP1000 units there. Ideas are also emerging about using the units under construction at V.C. Summer and completing the project.