With news that the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) has approved the life extension plans for Texas-based Vistra and its Perry Nuclear Power Plant, the company’s entire fleet has now been subject to at least one life extension. Each of Vistra’s six reactors is licensed to operate for a total of 60 years.
Perry is a General Electric boiling water reactor (BWR-6) located approximately 35 miles (55 km) Northeast of Cleveland, Ohio. The reactor is a nominal power rating of 3,758 MWth and 1,268 MWe following a previously approved power uprate.
The existing Perry facility operating license, NPF-58, expires on 7 November, 2026. It is operating under its initial 40-year license. With an additional 20 years beyond its original license now granted, Vistra is able to operate the plant until 7 November, 2046, having been first connected to the grid in 1986.
The US Atomic Energy Act (AEA) specifies that licenses for commercial power reactors can be granted for an initial period of up to 40 years and NRC regulations permit these licenses to be renewed beyond the initial term for an additional period of up to 20-years per renewal. This is based on an assessment to determine whether the nuclear facility can continue to operate safely during the proposed period of extended operation. There are no restrictions on the number of times a license may be renewed.
The application for license renewal was first submitted to the NRC in July 2023 from Energy Harbor Nuclear Corp under Title 10 of the Code of Federal Regulations Part 54, ‘Requirements for Renewal of Operating Licenses for Nuclear Power Plants’.
In December 2019 the NRC approved the transfer of operating licenses for the Beaver Valley nuclear plant units 1 and 2, the Davis-Besse and the Perry nuclear power plants, as well as associated spent fuel storage facilities from FirstEnergy Nuclear Operating Company and FirstEnergy Nuclear Generation Company to Energy Harbor Corp., Energy Harbor Nuclear Generation LLC, and Energy Harbor Nuclear Corp. This followed the completion of bankruptcy proceedings for FirstEnergy Solutions.
The NRC staff’s review of the license transfer application concluded that Energy Harbor Nuclear was financially qualified to own Beaver Valley, Davis-Besse, and Perry, and also financially and technically qualified to operate the plants. Furthermore, the NRC staff also concluded that, since the plants’ existing decommissioning funds will be transferred, the new licensees satisfy the NRC’s decommissioning funding assurance requirements and the facilities are not owned, controlled, or dominated by a foreign entity.
In March 2024 the operating license was transferred from Energy Harbor Nuclear Generation LLC (owner) to Energy Harbor Nuclear Generation LLC (owner) and Vistra Operations Company LLC (operator). Vistra then assumed the responsibility for all licensing actions.
Vistra already operated the Commanche Peak two-unit plant, located around 40 miles (64 km) southwest of Fort Worth in Texas. The two Westinghouse PWRs came on-line in 1990 and 1993, respectively, and the plant is rated at 2400 MWe.
The company established itself as a major nuclear plant owner and operator by building the second-largest nuclear power plant fleet in the US with the acquisition. Together, the six reactors across four plants have a combined capacity of more than 6,500 MWe.
Beaver Valley Units 1 and 2 are pressurised-water reactors (PWRs) located approximately 17 miles (25 km) west of McCandless, Pennsylvania. The units were originally scheduled to shut down in May 2021 and October 2021, respectively. Davis-Besse is a single unit PWR located approximately 21 miles (32 km) southeast of Toledo, Ohio, and following an extension programme is now licensed to operate through to 22 April, 2037.
An environmental impact statement (EIS) was prepared for the renewed license for Perry and is produced regardless of any environmental impact associated with the life extension. The NRC considers the environmental consequences of renewing the operating license, not renewing, and the environmental consequences of alternatives for replacing the nuclear power plant’s generating capacity. Based on their review, the NRC concluded that the environmentally preferred opotion is license renewal. In addition, the NRC is not imposing any further license conditions in connection with any environmental impact mitigation measures although the plant is subject to requirements imposed by other Federal, State, and local agencies governing its operation. On 30 April, 2025, the NRC issued its final EIS approval.
The NRC’s safety review determines whether the applicant has adequately demonstrated that the effects of aging will not adversely affect the intended functions of any systems, structures, and components. The applicant must demonstrate that the effects of aging will be adequately managed so that the intended functions will be maintained during the operating period. The results of its safety review were published in May 2025.
Commenting, Ken Peters, chief nuclear officer of Vistra, said: “This 20-year license extension reflects the strength of our safety culture, the condition of the plant, and the professionalism of our workforce.” Ultimately, the appropriate energy planning decision-makers and Vistra will decide whether Perry will continue to operate based on factors such as the need for power or other matters within the State’s jurisdiction or the purview of the owners.
Fleet life extension
Perry was the last of Vistra’s six nuclear reactors to apply for and receive its license extension approval. Vistra received NRC approval for a 20-year operating licence extension for the two-unit Comanche Peak Nuclear Plant in July 2024. This brings the current operating life for units 1 and 2 through to 2050 and 2053, respectively.
The application for license renewal for Comanche Peak was filed with the NRC in October 2022. During the NRC review process Vistra voluntarily submitted three supplements to the applications, which the NRC said contributed to a 70% reduction in its requests for information compared to previous license renewals. Comanche Peak was the third of Vistra’s nuclear plants to receive its license extension from the NRC.
The company’s Beaver Valley Nuclear Power Plant units 1 and 2 are licensed through into 2036 and 2047, and Davis-Besse is now licensed through 2037. Davis-Besse received its NRC license renewal in August 2015 under its FirstEnergy Corp. ownership. The plant’s original license was set to expire on 22 April, 2017 and the license renewal application was submitted to the NRC in 2010. It was the 81st US reactor to receive a license extension from the NRC and was Ohio’s first nuclear power plant when it began operating in 1977.
Prior to the extension application, FirstEnergy had invested nearly $1bn in Davis-Besse, including the installation of a new reactor head in 2011 and two new steam generators in 2013. The plant had also had power output increases totalling 25 MWe since 2003.
Fabrication of the two new steam generators began in 2009 by Babcock and Wilcox in Cambridge, Ontario. Meanwhile, FirstEnergy had selected Bechtel to replace the two steam generators and the reactor vessel closure head. Bechtel was the original architect engineer for Davis-Besse and in 2002 also performed a reactor head replacement at the Beaver Valley Unit 1 followed by a steam generator replacement in 2006.
“Electricity is a basic building block of our economy, and as demand for electricity accelerates, nuclear power remains a cornerstone of a reliable, sustainable grid,” said Jim Burke, president and chief executive officer of Vistra in a statement. He added: “Extending operations at Perry ensures that Ohio continues to benefit from a resilient source of baseload power, supporting jobs, economic activity, and grid reliability across the region. With this latest approval, all six reactors in Vistra’s fleet have received license extensions, reinforcing their long-term value to the communities and markets we serve.”
Perry employs approximately 600 full-time staff and more than 200 permanent contractors and the company says that the extension of Perry’s operating license secures long-term economic benefits for the community around the plant. In addition, refuelling outages bring in 800 to 1,200 technicians from across the country and underscore the plant’s role as a vital regional employer.
Burke had previously said: “Extending the operation of our nuclear fleet provides decades of support for both existing and growing sectors.” Extending operations ensures that a resilient source of baseload power remains in service, supporting jobs, economic activity, and grid reliability. License extensions thus reinforce the long-term value of the plants.
