Virgil C. Summer Nuclear Generating Station
The Virgil C. Summer Nuclear Power Station occupies a site near Jenkinsville, South Carolina, in Fairfield County, South Carolina, approximately 20 miles (32 km) northwest of Columbia.
| Virgil C. Summer Nuclear Power Station | |
|---|---|
Virgil C. Summer Nuclear Station Unit 1 | |
| Country | United States |
| Location | Fairfield County, South Carolina |
| Coordinates | 34°17′55″N 81°18′53″W |
| Status | Operational |
| Construction began | Unit 1: March 21, 1973 Unit 2: March 9, 2013 Unit 3: November 2, 2013 |
| Commission date | Unit 1: January 1, 1984 |
| Construction cost | $2.563 billion (2007 USD, Unit 1) ($3.5 billion in 2022 dollars) |
| Owner(s) | Dominion Energy South Carolina (two-thirds) South Carolina Public Service Authority (one-third) |
| Operator(s) | Dominion Energy South Carolina |
| Employees | 500 |
| Nuclear power station | |
| Reactor type | PWR |
| Reactor supplier | Westinghouse |
| Cooling towers | 4 × Mechanical Draft (intended for Units 2–3) |
| Cooling source | Monticello Reservoir |
| Thermal capacity | 1 × 2900 MWth |
| Power generation | |
| Units operational | 1 × 973 MW |
| Make and model | WH 3-loop (DRYAMB) |
| Units cancelled | 2 × 1117 MW AP1000 |
| Nameplate capacity | 973 MW |
| Capacity factor | 81.11% (2017) 83.9% (lifetime) |
| Annual net output | 6552 GWh (2021) |
| External links | |
| Website | www.sceg.com |
| Commons | Related media on Commons |
The plant has one Westinghouse 3-loop Pressurized Water Reactor, which has received approval of a 20-year license extension, taking the license expiration of Unit 1 from 2022 to 2042. Its cooling water is supplied by the Monticello Reservoir, which is also used by a pumped storage (hydroelectric) unit. The plant utilizes a once-through cooling system.
South Carolina Electric and Gas was also in the process of constructing two Westinghouse AP1000 plants, which had been scheduled to go into service in 2020, but construction on these was abandoned in 2017.
The nuclear power station also includes the decommissioned experimental Carolinas-Virginia Tube Reactor (CVTR) unit, just outside the site of the old town of Parr, SC. The CVTR was a 17 MWe, heavy water reactor.
The plant is named after Virgil Clifton Summer, the former Chairman and CEO of SCE&G.
In August 2023, Dominion Energy applied for another 20-year license extension for Unit 1 beyond 2042, which as of October 2023 is under consideration by the NRC.