Clinton Nuclear Generating Station
| Clinton Power Station | |
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Clinton Power Station
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 Location of Clinton Power Station in Illinois
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| Country | United States |
| Location | Harp Township, DeWitt County, near Clinton, Illinois |
| Coordinates | 40°10′20″N 88°50′6″W / 40.17222°N 88.83500°WCoordinates: 40°10′20″N 88°50′6″W / 40.17222°N 88.83500°W |
| Commission date | April 24, 1987 |
| Construction cost | $4.25 billion |
| Operator(s) | Exelon Corporation |
| Nuclear power station | |
| Reactor type | BWR-6 |
| Reactor supplier | General Electric |
| Power generation | |
| Units operational | 1 |
| Nameplate capacity | 1098 MW |
| Annual gross output | 8710 GW·h |
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Website Clinton Power Station |
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The Clinton Power Station is located near Clinton, Illinois, USA. The power station began commercial operation on April 24, 1987 and has a nominal gross electric output of 1,098 MWe. Due to inflation and cost overruns, Clinton's final construction cost $4.25 billion ($8.96 billion today), nearly 1,000% over the original budget of $430 million and seven years behind schedule.
The station has a single sixth-generation General Electric Boiling Water Reactor. The present reactor operating license was issued April 17, 1987, and will expire September 29, 2026. Plans for a second reactor were shelved. Exelon, the owner and operator of the present reactor, announced plans to permanently close the power station in June 2017, due to the plants struggles to compete economically in wholesale markets, resulting in a loss of millions of dollars in recent years. However, the plans for closure were canceled when the Illinois State Legislature passed and the Illinois Governor signed SB 2814, The Future Energy Jobs Bill. The legislation provides Zero Emission Credits for the plants CO2-free electricity. The consequences of continued operation include saving 4,200 jobs and the annual generation of 22 billion kWhs of CO2-free energy.
The surrounding 14,300 acres (58 km2) site and adjacent 5,000 acres (20 km2) cooling reservoir, Clinton Lake, is owned by the operator, but hosts the Clinton Lake State Recreation Area and is open to public for a large range of outdoor activities. Only around 150 acres (0.61 km2) are actually used by the plant's buildings and operation areas.
There were a number of problems during the first several years of operation. For example, the facility was down for maintenance frequently and was out of service for almost half of the time from September 1988 to October 1989. In 1997, it was also said to be producing "some of the highest electric rates in the midwest". After less than a decade of operation the plant's original owner, Illinois Power, had to close it in 1996 following some technical problems and safety violations resulting in a $450,000 fine.
Having deduced that it was not economical to own and operate only one nuclear generating station in the newly deregulated market, they kept it shut down during around 3 years whilst looking for an interested buyer.Exelon Corporation bought it for a more modest price of $40 million, with the purchase including the fuel in the reactor vessel and responsibility of all the radioactive waste in the spent fuel storage pool. The Operator and Owner is the Exelon Corporation.
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