Diablo Canyon in San Luis Obispo County, Calif. (Photo: PG&E)
Pacific Gas and Electric has received a federal credit payment of $271 million from the Department of Energy under the DOE’s Civil Nuclear Credit (CNC) Program, which was set up in 2022 as a $6 billion federal strategic investment to help preserve the existing U.S. nuclear reactor fleet. The Award Cycle 1 funds just disbursed cover extended operations for Diablo Canyon-1, with the DOE noting that Unit 2 will become eligible for a CNC payment after completion of the 2025 award year audit.
9 percent of California’s power: The CNC funds for Unit 1 come after the April approval by the Nuclear Regulatory Commission of 20-year operating license extensions for the two Westinghouse pressurized water reactors. Diablo Canyon-1 and -2, which entered commercial operation in 1985 and 1986, respectively, are now approved to operate until 2044 and 2045. The reactors generate a combined 18,000 gigawatt-hours of electricity every year, according to the California Energy Commission, representing approximately 9 percent of the state’s annual power generation.
Diablo Canyon’s reactors had been scheduled for decommissioning in 2024 and 2025. California Gov. Gavin Newsom signed legislation in 2022 which made it possible to extend their operating lifetimes until at least 2029 and 2030, and in December 2023, the California Public Utilities Commission voted to extend the life of Diablo Canyon an additional five years. To continue operation after those years, additional state legislation is required.
In 2022, the DOE determined that Diablo Canyon would be eligible for the CNC funding that it has only just received. PG&E is eligible to receive as much as $1.1 billion in DOE funding to support continued activities at Diablo Canyon. Those DOE funds could be used for such expenses as reactor component replacements, equipment upgrades, fuel procurement, and unforeseen costs associated with extended operations.
CNC Program: The continued relevance of the now down-sized CNC Program has been questioned in recent years, as private sector investments in existing and new nuclear power assets has grown.
Assistant Secretary for Nuclear Energy Ted Garrish said of the DOE’s credit payment to PG&E, “Keeping Diablo Canyon on line is critical to meeting California’s growing demand for affordable, reliable, and secure electricity. The Civil Nuclear Credit Program is helping preserve this vital source of baseload power and ensuring that we don’t prematurely take reliable generation off the grid. The Department of Energy is committed to unleashing American nuclear energy and keeping facilities like Diablo Canyon operating safely and reliably for the American people.”
