Prairie Island Nuclear Power Plant

Prairie Island Nuclear Generating Station
Prairie Island Nuclear Generating Plant in 2024
Map
Official namePrairie Island Nuclear Generating Station, Prairie Island Nuclear Generating Plant
CountryUnited States
LocationRed Wing, Goodhue County, Minnesota
Coordinates44°37′18″N 92°37′59″W / 44.62167°N 92.63306°W / 44.62167; -92.63306
StatusOperational
Construction beganUnit 1: June 25, 1968
Unit 2: June 25, 1969
Commission dateUnit 1: December 16, 1973
Unit 2: December 21, 1974
Construction cost$993.3 million (2007 USD)[1]
OwnerXcel Energy
OperatorNorthern States Power Company
Nuclear power station
Reactor typePWR
Reactor supplierWestinghouse
Cooling towers4 × Mechanical Draft
Cooling sourceMississippi River
Thermal capacity2 × 1677 MWth
Power generation
Units operational1 × 522 MW
1 × 519 MW
Make and modelWH 2-loop (DRYAMB)
Nameplate capacity1041 MW
Capacity factor95.90% (2017)
86.75% (lifetime)
Annual net output9099 GWh (2021)
External links
WebsitePrairie Island Nuclear Generating Station
CommonsRelated media on Commons

The Prairie Island Nuclear Generating Plant is an electricity-generating facility located in Red Wing, Minnesota, along the Mississippi River, and adjacent to the Prairie Island Indian Community reservation.

The nuclear power plant, which began operating in 1973, has two nuclear reactors (pressurized water reactors) manufactured by Westinghouse that produce a total 1,076 megawatts of power. Units 1 and 2 are licensed by the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) to operate through 2033 and 2034, respectively. The plant is owned by Northern States Power Company (NSP), a subsidiary of Xcel Energy, and is operated by Xcel Energy.

Prairie Island is one of two nuclear power plants in Minnesota (the other being Monticello Nuclear Generating Plant in Monticello). Prairie Island has attracted controversy in the early 21st century for its operator Xcel Energy's decision to store nuclear waste in large steel casks on-site. As this area is a floodplain of the Mississippi, many opponents of the decision fear the risk of water contamination through breach of the casks during seasonal flooding of this important river. They opposed renewal of the federal license at the Prairie Island facility.

In April 2008, Xcel requested that the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) renew the licenses of both reactors, extending them for an additional twenty years. The license renewals were approved in June 2011.[2][3]

The company has also requested NRC approval to use a similar storage system at its Monticello plant, which is currently licensed through 2030.

In May 2006 repair workers at the plant were exposed to very low levels of radiation due to inhalation of radioactive iodine-131 (131I) gas. The gas leaked from the steam generators, which were opened for inspection. 131I gas is normally removed by means of a carbon-based filter; in this case the filter had developed a small leak. The NRC deemed this event to be of very low safety significance. It said that no overdose of radiation resulted in any of the workers.[4]

The winter net electrical generation is 560 MW (Unit 1) and 554 MW (Unit 2). The gross electrical generation for both units is 592 MW.[5]

  1. ^ "EIA - State Nuclear Profiles". www.eia.gov. Retrieved 3 October 2017.
  2. ^ "Prairie Island Nuclear Generating Plant, Units 1 and 2 - License Renewal Application". Nuclear Regulatory Commission. Retrieved 16 March 2011.
  3. ^ Karnowski, Steve (June 28, 2011). "Prairie Island nuclear plant licenses renewed". Associated Press. Archived from the original on June 29, 2011. Retrieved 30 June 2011.
  4. ^ 4Q/2007 Inspection Findings - Prairie Island 2
  5. ^ "PRAIRIE ISLAND NUCLEAR GENERATING PLANT, UNITS 1 AND 2 AMENDMENT RE: MEASUREMENT UNCERTAINTY RECAPTURE POWER UPRATE" (PDF). Retrieved 2023-01-06.