TVA brief update

Nuclear Engineering International is reporting that the Tennessee Valley Authority's long term plan includes an increased focus on nuclear power, and indicates that the federally-owned utility company may even shut down some fossil fuelled plants when emissions restrictions are made more stringent by the EPA. Most interesting is the assertion by NEI that it seems likely that TVA will push forward with Bellefonte, in Alabama (two unfinished units) and that work is already underway (as noted here) on Watts Bar 2. These, along with Vogtle, look like our best near-term bets for getting new reactors on the grid.

Watts Bar 2 is an unfinished Westinghouse PWR, rated 3411 MWt, 1177 MWe net, while Bellefonte 1 & 2 are unfinished Babcock & Wilcox PWR plants, which the company was referring to in print as their BW-205 model (with 205 fuel elements) and which were to have been rated 3620 MWt / 1213 MWe. As previously reported here and everywhere, Vogtle 3 & 4 are to be Westinghouse AP1000 plants. Look at this blog's LINKS section for the Westinghouse link; from there you can find an excellent downloadable Westinghouse brochure on the AP1000 plant, in PDF file format.