FirstEnergy Solutions (FES), a subsidiary of the US energy company FirstEnergy Corporation (First Gen), has formally notified the US Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) of its plans to permanently decommission three nuclear power plants totalling 4,048 MW, due to severe economic challenges. The company filed voluntary petitions for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection earlier in April 2018 along with FirstEnergy Nuclear Operating, another First Gen subsidiary.
The three nuclear power plants, namely Davis-Besse in Oak Harbor (Ohio), Beaver Valley in Shippingport, Pennsylvania) and Perry (Perry, Ohio), account for 65% of FES' power generation (2017). The 908 MWe Davis-Besse facility built in 1978, the first unit of the 1,872 MW Beaver Valley power plant (commissioned in 1976) and the 1,268 MW Perry facility commissioned in 1987 will all retire by 31 May 2020; the second unit of the Beaver Vally power plant will retire by 31 October 2020.
The plant closures are subject to review by PJM for reliability impacts.
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