Energy Harbor's Davis-Besse nuclear power plant in Ohio faces valve problem

Energy Harbor Nuclear Corp.'s 971-MW Davis-Besse in Oak Harbor, Ohio, was operating at 28% of capacity late in the morning of Feb. 7 following a relief valve malfunction after the unit had begun coasting down to a refueling and maintenance outage, company spokesperson Jason Copsey said.

The plant was operating at 98% power and was coasting to a spring refueling and maintenance outage when the valve problem occurred Feb. 5, said Copsey, who explained that the turbine and generator were taken offline at 3:27 pm ET that day and the reactor was stabilized at 14% power but was never shut.

Repairs were made, but Copsey did not say when the refueling and maintenance outage will begin and how long the outage will last.

"Details regarding refueling and maintenance will be available once we are closer to the outage," he said.

The reactor operated at 20% early the morning of Feb. 7, the US Nuclear Regulatory Commission said in a daily reactor status report.

US nuclear power units typically reduce their output gradually before shutting for refueling. This so-called coastdown period varies in duration from several days to several weeks.

The average length of US nuclear refueling outages in 2020, according to S&P Global Platts data, was 34.5 days as some operators deferred certain work due to coronavirus measures.