US Constellation Energy plans to invest about $355m in a lengthy project that will increase the power output of its Byron Nuclear Power Station in Northern Illinois, and extend the life of the facility and its equipment.
The Power Uprate Project, planned to begin in 2026 and finish in 2029, will replace six low-pressure turbines and two high-pressure turbines. The new turbines will generate an additional 79-80 MWe. The project will also update the electrical system to accommodate that increase, according to Byron Site Vice President Harris Welt.
Although the project will increase its power output, it will also improve the efficiency of the plant because the new turbines are larger, which therefore will spin faster and generate more energy, Welt said.
Currently, the Byron station, which comprises two Westinghouse pressurised water reactors, produces 2,347 MWe which is equivalent to the energy needed to power more that 1.7 million homes. With the new turbines, output will increase to about 2,427 MWe.
“It’s very exciting. A lot of planning that’s been going on the last couple years,” Project Manager Justin Shippert said. The work will start with installing the low-pressure turbines. Each one will be lowered in using two cranes attached to the ceiling. Typically, it would only take one crane but since each turbine weighs more than 350 pounds, it will require both, he explained.
Typically, the Byron site has 693 employees. The upgrades will bring in an additional 600 contractional employees during four construction windows. On top of that, the station is currently undergoing an outage at one of its two plant units, bringing in about 1,500 more employees.
The 2025 outage marks 40 years since that plant went online in 1985 and 50 years since the station was built in 1975.
