The Columbia Generating Station, the sole commercial nuclear power reactor in the Northwest, commenced a planned 35-day refueling outage on Friday.

Conducted every other spring when electricity demand is low and hydropower from snowmelt is abundant, the outage allows for refueling the reactor core and performing essential maintenance. Situated 10 miles north of Richland on leased land at the Hanford nuclear reservation site, the Energy Northwest facility is unrelated to the historical weapons work and ongoing environmental cleanup in the area.

Having just completed its second-longest operating run of 508 days, the reactor disengaged from the grid to undergo the refueling process. The outage necessitates approximately 1,200 temporary workers, including locals from the Tri-Cities area and employees from across the country who occupy campsites and available temporary housing during the months leading up to and throughout the outage. These workers join the facility's permanent staff of 1,000 employees. Key tasks during the outage involve replacing 248 of the reactor core's 764 nuclear fuel assemblies, inspecting turbine and reheater components, and conducting diagnostic testing and maintenance on valves and transformer oil circuit breakers.

Grover Hettel, Chief Nuclear Officer at Energy Northwest, emphasized the importance of safely completing the work to ensure the continued production of reliable, carbon-free power for the region. The Columbia Generating Station, a 1,207-megawatt boiling water reactor, supplies approximately 10% of Washington state's electricity, all of which is provided at cost to the Bonneville Power Administration.

Source: tri-cityherald.com