Point Beach Nuclear Plant
Point Beach Nuclear Plant
Point Beach Nuclear Plant
CountryUnited States
LocationTown of Two Creeks, Manitowoc County, near Two Rivers, Wisconsin
Coordinates44°16′52″N 87°32′12″W / 44.28111°N 87.53667°W / 44.28111; -87.53667
StatusOperational
Construction beganUnit 1: July 19, 1967
Unit 2: July 25, 1968
Commission dateUnit 1: December 21, 1970
Unit 2: October 1, 1972
Construction costUnit 1: $60.6 million, 1971 USD ($452 million, 2023 USD)
Unit 2: $54.3 million, 1972 USD ($392 million, 2023 USD)[1]
Owner(s)NextEra Energy Resources
Operator(s)NextEra Energy Resources
Employees400[2]
Nuclear power station
Reactor typePWR
Reactor supplierWestinghouse
Cooling sourceLake Michigan
Thermal capacity2 × 1800 MWth
Power generation
Units operational2 × 625 MW
Make and modelWH 2-loop (DRYAMB)
Nameplate capacity1182 MW
Capacity factor96.87% (2019)
82.80% (lifetime)
Annual net output10,077 GWh (2022)
External links
WebsitePoint Beach Nuclear Plant
CommonsRelated media on Commons

Point Beach Nuclear Plant is a nuclear power plant located on Lake Michigan in the town of Two Creeks, Wisconsin, United States. The plant was built by Wisconsin Electric Power Company (now We Energies, a subsidiary of Wisconsin Energy Corporation), and previously operated by the Nuclear Management Company. The plant is currently owned and operated by NextEra Energy Resources (prior to 2009 – FPL Energy), of Juno Beach, Florida.

The plant is composed of two, two-loop Westinghouse pressurized water reactors. There is also a visitors' center located just south of the administration building.

Construction for Unit 1 began in 1966 and it was placed into commercial operation in December 1970. Unit 2 was placed into commercial operation in September 1972. The plant was built for a total cost of $114.9 million ($844 million, 2023 USD).[3]

The entire site covers 1,050 acres; approximately 70 acres are used for the nuclear power plant and transmission yard infrastructure and the remaining land used for agriculture or solar arrays.[4]

Point Beach Nuclear Plant - September 2023

History

The original letter of intent to purchase a single 454 megawatt (MW) nuclear unit from Westinghouse Electric Company for a fixed-price was issued by Wisconsin Electric and Wisconsin Michigan Power Company (a Wisconsin Electric subsidiary)[5] on December 30, 1965. The right was reserved to order a second, duplicate unit under the same terms. In May, 1966, the announcement was made that the plant would be built on a 1,200-acre site in the town of Two Creeks.

On November 28, 1966, following Public Service Commission of Wisconsin (PSCW) endorsement and a brief public hearing, Alfred Gruhl, Glenn Reed, and Sol Burstein[6] turned the first symbolic spades of dirt for the official ground-breaking. In May, 1967, the Atomic Energy Commission (AEC), predecessor to the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC), issued the official construction permit (number 32) for Point Beach Unit 1. The Unit 2 construction permit (number 47) was issued approximately a year later.[6]

On October 5, 1970, the AEC issued its full-term, full-power Operating License (DPR-24) for Point Beach Unit 1. The loading fuel into the reactor commenced almost immediately. On November 2, 1970, operators achieved initial criticality, with the nuclear-powered electricity being produced four days later, on November 6. Full commercial service was reached on December 21, 1970, just 49 months from the initial groundbreaking ceremony. After delays from nuclear power opponents, Unit 2 was granted a full-term, full-power operating license (DPR-27) on March 8, 1973, almost 1+1⁄2 years behind the original schedule.[6]

Due to steam generator tube degradation and failures caused by intergranular stress corrosion cracking, Unit 1 was operated at approximately 75-80% of full power from December 1979 until October 1983, when replacement steam generators were installed.[7] The Unit 2 steam generators were replaced in 1996–1997.[8]

In 2005, the NRC approved the initial license renewal application for the Point Beach plant, extending the operating license from forty years to sixty.[9][10] in 2011, the NRC approved a 17% increase in power output (a.k.a. extended power uprate) from both units. This entailed significant upgrades to several plant systems and components, including safety-related pumps and valves, as well as the turbine-generator sets.[11]

NextEra Energy Resources purchased the plant from Wisconsin Electric Power Company in October 2007.[12] As part of the sale, We Energies agreed to repurchase all of the power produced by the plant for at least 20 years. In 2000–2007 the plant was managed by the Nuclear Management Company.

Owners submitted applications for subsequent license extension (60 years to 80 years) for both reactors to the NRC in November 2020. The decision announcement was expected in July 2022, however this was delayed as the NRC required additional environmental impact evaluation be completed. A NRC public meeting was held on February 17, 2021 to solicit public comments on the scope of the environmental review.

Most of the power from this plant goes to the Green Bay area and communities along the Lake Michigan shoreline of Southeastern Wisconsin. The plant is connected to the grid by four 345 kV lines, one of which travels northwest towards Green Bay and then on to the We Energies North Appleton substation located about 12 miles north of Appleton, Wisconsin, and the other one interconnecting with the now-closed[13] Kewaunee Nuclear Generating Station located a short distance away to the north from Point Beach. The other 345 kV lines going out of the plant go south towards Milwaukee. Several 138 kV lines going out of the plant supply electricity to the surrounding area.

In November 2020, construction of the nearby 150 MW Two Creeks Solar Park was completed, at a cost of $195 million. The solar farm is located several miles southwest of the nuclear plant.

Electricity generation

Point Beach generated 10,077 GWh in 2022, 16.5% of all electricity produced in Wisconsin.

Generation (MWh) Point Beach Power Plant[14] (Nuclear Only)[15]
Year Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec Total (Annual)
2001 747,957 634,093 750,906 433,802 562,905 693,537 728,365 707,943 569,003 742,015 734,847 739,695 8,045,068
2002 751,028 624,538 753,521 505,585 574,254 730,869 746,848 751,595 520,408 532,423 734,354 754,656 7,980,079
2003 753,611 689,821 765,308 682,667 743,000 735,053 587,460 755,886 690,771 405,146 479,990 767,623 8,056,336
2004 768,940 714,409 760,799 395,417 323,118 620,125 759,345 763,343 738,197 734,412 668,786 767,076 8,013,967
2005 766,668 687,003 765,872 379,312 378,941 366,707 588,370 753,784 646,520 384,587 436,960 718,979 6,873,703
2006 767,529 692,841 761,705 744,257 763,705 736,477 763,706 745,747 731,483 556,789 527,817 768,360 8,560,416
2007 765,914 694,126 765,807 370,255 668,624 576,726 758,404 747,943 656,843 764,043 750,088 765,740 8,284,513
2008 580,167 667,760 770,034 426,997 597,286 738,617 759,633 741,942 728,096 427,927 566,303 762,453 7,767,215
2009 763,248 691,021 765,343 742,080 696,917 736,501 757,545 758,499 714,270 543,595 327,645 671,169 8,167,833
2010 764,991 687,983 380,308 689,603 767,038 633,399 699,236 746,163 742,782 764,896 749,905 664,381 8,290,685
2011 769,544 694,377 381,450 367,461 377,870 444,345 825,187 813,999 795,349 469,283 434,287 591,874 6,965,026
2012 885,774 829,858 881,358 804,487 895,831 817,735 823,428 818,423 830,321 888,894 430,848 876,746 9,783,703
2013 888,923 803,648 686,951 577,038 892,324 865,249 889,843 849,959 855,549 894,609 866,060 871,562 9,941,715
2014 894,014 807,255 647,855 551,744 878,772 862,226 892,854 854,574 863,958 484,812 846,101 862,931 9,447,096
2015 894,261 807,599 889,908 865,194 894,308 862,785 890,823 886,946 848,182 471,374 826,112 870,691 10,008,183
2016 896,413 838,689 599,550 771,742 895,263 862,524 890,714 879,818 859,221 891,601 869,130 896,729 10,151,394
2017 896,822 809,449 680,478 604,968 899,032 869,363 884,636 880,360 848,354 522,531 852,038 900,948 9,648,979
2018 900,095 811,599 897,070 867,179 897,537 864,881 892,088 883,172 851,052 565,516 873,212 825,721 10,129,122
2019 891,565 799,500 754,943 569,831 858,658 867,739 896,065 858,088 866,670 896,614 873,465 897,167 10,030,305
2020 896,579 838,452 621,646 776,698 899,562 868,122 887,222 887,469 863,889 490,510 844,423 896,761 9,771,333
2021 894,739 802,967 892,180 852,662 898,669 865,696 876,100 822,904 828,038 532,678 805,580 897,977 9,970,190
2022 896,422 809,933 782,184 534,981 897,835 868,658 891,034 880,963 852,915 893,605 871,077 897,411 10,077,018
2023 896,087 800,574 569,769 787,141 897,146 857,768 883,943 878,331 847,205
Wisconsin electricity generation by fuel type[16] (GWh)
Source Year % of 2017

Total

 % of 2021

Total

2017 2018 2019 2020 2021
Coal 35,437 32,933 26,003 23,490 27,233 55.9 43.5
Petroleum oil 32 35 52 18 162 0.1 0.3
Petroleum coke 111 101 90 86 154 0.2 0.2
Natural gas 13,110 16,067 19,514 21,098 20,369 20.7 32.5
Nuclear 9,649 10,129 10,030 9,771 9,970 15.2 15.9
Hydroelectric 2,489 2,251 2,527 2,661 2,023 3.9 3.2
Wind 1,633 1,611 1,849 1,735 1,566 2.6 2.5
Utility-scale solar 21 35 36 90 363 0.0 0.6
Biomass 842 816 764 686 721 1.3 1.2
Other 17 17 21 20 23 0.0 0.0
Total generation 63,341 63,995 60,886 59,655 62,584
Point Beach ISFSI
Point Beach Nuclear Plant ISFSI (Independent Spent Fuel Storage Installation) - September 2023

Surrounding population

The Nuclear Regulatory Commission defines two emergency planning zones around nuclear power plants: a plume exposure pathway zone with a radius of 10 miles (16 km), concerned primarily with exposure to, and inhalation of, airborne radioactive contamination, and an ingestion pathway zone of about 50 miles (80 km), concerned primarily with ingestion of food and liquid contaminated by radioactivity.[17]

The 2010 U.S. population within 10 miles (16 km) of Point Beach was 19,975, a decrease of 6.7 percent in a decade, according to an analysis of U.S. Census data for msnbc.com. The 2010 U.S. population within 50 miles (80 km) was 777,556, an increase of 10.0 percent since 2000. Cities within 50 miles include Green Bay (28 miles to city center).[18]

Seismic risk

The Nuclear Regulatory Commission's estimate of the risk each year of an earthquake intense enough to cause core damage to the reactor at Point Beach was 1 in 90,909, according to an NRC study published in August 2010. This was tied for 62 in a list of 104 with #1 being most at risk.[19][20]

Point Beach Energy Center
Point Beach The Energy Experience Exhibit - An interactive, educational exhibit within the Point Beach Energy Center

References

  1. ↑ "Nuclear Power Plant Construction Activity 1986". www.osti.gov. Retrieved 2 February 2023.
  2. ↑ "Point Beach" (PDF). NextEra Energy Resources. Retrieved 2023-07-06.
  3. ↑ "Nuclear Power Plant Construction Activity 1986 DOE/EIA—0473(86) DE87 013213". U.S. Department of Energy Office of Scientific and Technical Information. 1986. p. 32. Retrieved February 26, 2023.
  4. ↑ "EIA - State Nuclear Profiles". www.eia.gov. Retrieved 2023-02-27.
  5. ↑ "WEC History". www.wecenergygroup.com. Retrieved 2017-05-11.
  6. 1 2 3 20th Anniversary Point Beach Nuclear Plant. Wisconsin Electric Power Company. 1991. pp. 1–2.
  7. ↑ 20th Anniversary Point Beach Nuclear Plant. Wisconsin Electric Power Company. pp. 35–36.
  8. ↑ "NextEra Energy Point Beach Fact Sheet" (PDF). NextEra Energy Resources.
  9. ↑ "RENEWED FACILITY OPERATING LICENSE Renewed License No. DPR-24" (PDF). NRC.gov.
  10. ↑ "RENEWED FACILITY OPERATING LICENSE Renewed License No. DPR-27" (PDF). USNRC.
  11. ↑ "Regulatory approval for Point Beach uprate". www.world-nuclear-news.org. Retrieved 2017-05-11.
  12. ↑ "Wisconsin Energy Transfers Ownership of Point Beach Nuclear Plant to FPL Energy". 2007-10-01.
  13. ↑ Matthew L. Wald (May 7, 2013). "As Price of Nuclear Energy Drops, a Wisconsin Plant Is Shut". The New York Times. Retrieved May 8, 2013.
  14. ↑ "Electricity Data Browser". www.eia.gov. Retrieved 2022-12-30.
  15. ↑ "Electricity Data Browser". www.eia.gov. Retrieved 2023-12-26.
  16. ↑ "Electricity Data Browser". www.eia.gov. Retrieved 2022-12-31.
  17. ↑ "Backgrounder on Emergency Preparedness at Nuclear Power Plants". NRC.gov. Archived from the original on 2006-10-02.
  18. ↑ Dedman, Bill (April 14, 2011). "Nuclear neighbors: Population rises near US reactors". NBC News. Retrieved May 1, 2011.
  19. ↑ Dedman, Bill (March 17, 2011). "What are the odds? US nuke plants ranked by quake risk". NBC News. Retrieved April 19, 2011.
  20. ↑ Hiland, Patrick (September 2, 2010). "Safety / Risk Assessment Results for Generic Issue 199" (PDF). msnbc.com. Office of Nuclear Regulatory Research. Archived from the original (PDF) on May 25, 2017. Retrieved April 19, 2011.
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