Energy Northwest
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Nuclear
Only Nuclear Power Plant in U.S. Northwest Set to Add Generating Capacity
The only commercial nuclear power plant in the U.S. Pacific Northwest is set for a $700-million upgrade that would add nearly 200 MW of generation capacity. The Columbia Generating Station in Richland, Washington, with a current capacity of 1,207 MW, will undergo an extended power uprate that will be done during the plant’s next three biennial spring refueling outages in 2027, 2029, and 2031.
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Nuclear
AtkinsRéalis Will Be Owner’s Engineer for Energy Northwest’s SMR
AtkinsRéalis Group, a Canada-based global engineering services and nuclear company, on Dec. 12 said it has been chosen as the owner’s engineer for Energy Northwest’s small modular reactor (SMR) project in Washington state. “We are thrilled to see utilities worldwide turning to AtkinsRéalis to support strategic public-private-partnerships by leveraging the deployment of nuclear power technology,” […]
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Nuclear
Amazon Backs Massive Nuclear SMR Deployment: 5 GW with X-Energy, Agreements With Energy Northwest, Dominion
In yet another major set of deals spearheaded by a tech giant in support of nuclear power development, Amazon will back the deployment of 5 GW of new X-energy small modular reactor (SMR) projects by 2039, starting with an initial four-unit 320-MWe Xe-100 plant with regional utility Energy Northwest in central Washington. Separately, Amazon signed […]
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Nuclear
Puget Sound Energy Commits $10M to Nuclear Power Feasibility Work, X-energy SMR Technology a Leading Contender for Project
Energy Northwest, a Washington state public power joint operating agency, announced an agreement with Bellevue-based Puget Sound Energy (PSE), which it says will “accelerate the agency’s program examining the feasibility of developing and deploying a next-generation nuclear energy facility.” The agreement, a $10 million investment by PSE in Energy Northwest’s new nuclear project feasibility phase, […]
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News
DOE Picks More ARDP Winners; One or More Advanced Nuclear Demonstrations Will Be in Washington State
The Department of Energy (DOE) has chosen five assorted advanced nuclear reactor concepts under the second Advanced Reactor Demonstration Program (ARDP) risk reduction pathway. TerraPower and X-energy, which the DOE chose to support under the first ARDP pathway, are looking at siting their advanced nuclear demonstrations in Washington State, the DOE said. The ARDP program, which […]
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News
Energy Northwest Study Makes a Case for SMRs in Future Power Mix
Deep decarbonization of the U.S. Northwest can be achieved at “manageable” costs by 2045, but only if utility agency Energy Northwest secures zero-emitting firm capacity, such as by relicensing Columbia Generating Station—the sole nuclear plant in the region—and building small modular reactors (SMRs), a new study suggests. The study by San Francisco-based consulting group Energy […]
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News
Columbia Nuclear Plant Sets Another Generation Record, Credits Good Performance
Operators of the Columbia Generating Station have set a new generation record at the nuclear plant 12 miles north of Richland, Wash., sending more than 9.7 million MWh to the Pacific Northwest power grid during 2018. The single 1,207-MW single GE-built Mark-2 boiling water reactor that is owned and operated by Energy Northwest—which comprises 26 […]
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Renewables
Bonneville Power Administration Unveils Strategic Plan to Stay Afloat
Overwhelmed by low wholesale power prices and changing customer needs in the Pacific Northwest, the Bonneville Power Administration (BPA) on January 30 unveiled a lifeline it hopes will allow it to remain commercially afloat. While the nonprofit federal power marketer headquartered in Portland, Oregon, is part of the Department of Energy, it is self-funding and […]
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Nuclear
NRC to Issue Construction and Operating License for Dominion’s North Anna ESBWR
The Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) has given its staff the green light to license Dominion Energy’s Economic Simplified Boiling Water Reactor (ESBWR) proposed for construction at its North Anna site in Virginia. It also approved an uprate at Energy Northwest’s Columbia Generating Station in Washington. The NRC said it authorized issuance of the combined construction and […]