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Constellation Energy’s Nine Mile Point Nuclear Station Unit 1 Completes Record Refueling Outage
Key Generator of Emission-Free Electricity Poised to Continue Safe, Reliable Operations

 - By Abby Gessner -

Constellation Energy today announced that its Nine Mile Point Nuclear Station Unit 1 in Scriba, N.Y. has completed a scheduled refueling outage. The refueling outage was completed in 19 days, 14 hours and 13 minutes -- the shortest duration ever for Nine Mile Point’s Unit 1. The previous Unit 1 refueling outage was 29 days.

Nine Mile Point Unit 1 joins a small group of U.S. nuclear facilities that have completed refueling outages in less than 20 days. The efficiency of the outage is a product of two years of in-depth planning and preparation to set the stage for the successful refueling.

“Successful completion of the equipment maintenance and inspections performed during this refueling outage will enhance operations and reliability during Nine Mile Point Unit 1’s operating cycle over the next two years,” said Keith Polson, vice president, Nine Mile Point Nuclear Station. “This success is a tribute to the significant role played by the entire Nine Mile Point outage team – our Nine Mile Point employees, shared resources from Constellation Energy’s Calvert Cliffs and R.E. Ginna Nuclear Power Plants and our Baltimore offices and hundreds of contract workers – in safely and efficiently executing the refueling outage.”

Polson noted that effective refueling outages and longer operating cycles at Nine Mile Point benefit customers by providing a safe, reliable source of emission-free electricity. Unit 1 returned to the electrical grid at 2:13 p.m. April 9 and reached full power at 7:00 p.m. Wednesday.

In addition to standard refueling and maintenance activities, plant personnel completed modifications and inspections to ensure continued equipment reliability through the remainder of Unit 1’s operating license, which expires in 2029.

Constellation Energy owns 100 percent of Unit 1 and 82 percent of Unit 2 — 1,550 megawatts of Nine Mile Point’s 1,758 MW of total generating capacity. The Long Island Power Authority owns 18 percent of Unit 2. In October 2006, Nine Mile Point Nuclear Station received renewed operating licenses for both generating units from the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission. The renewed licenses permit both units to operate an additional 20 years from their original 40-year licenses -- Unit 1 to operate until 2029 and Unit 2 until 2046.