Braidwood Generating Station's second unit returns to full operational capacity

Exelon Corp. announced on Monday that Unit 2 at the Braidwood Generating Station has returned to full service capacity after the completion of refueling and other maintenance-related operations.

The plant shut down for refueling operations on Oct. 5. During this time, the facility was shut off and taken off of the electrical grid in order to complete the activity and to make necessary repairs, inspections and other activities that would not be possible while the reactor is running.

Approximately 9,000 safety-related inspections, tests and improvements were made in order to keep the reactor up to date with the latest technology. One third of the facility’s fuel was replaced over the course of the outage.

“Our refueling outages are critical to maintaining long-term reliability,” Site Vice President Mark Kanavos said. “The work completed during this outage ensures that we will continue to provide safe, reliable and clean electricity whenever it is needed.”

During this outage, Unit 1 continued to operate at full capacity. Combined, the Braidwood plant generates approximately 2,354 megawatts of electricity.

Exelon states that it operates 11 nuclear reactors in the state of Illinois through six sites; approximately 48 percent of the state’s electricity is generated through nuclear plants owned by the company. Exelon Generation operates three nuclear power plants, 12 fossil power plants, two landfill gas plants and one pumped storage hydroelectric power plant in the state.