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NUCLEAR FACTS Business
of nuclear
U.S. nuclear power plant
performance
Key Facts
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In 1999, nuclear energy generated more
electricity-728 billion kilowatt-hours-in the United States than
any other fuel source except coal. |
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In 1999, U.S. nuclear power plants achieved an
average capacity factor of 86.8 percent. (Capacity factor
measures the amount of electricity actually produced compared
with the maximum output achievable.) The 1999 average is 29
percentage points higher than the 1980 average. |
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In 1999, 95 percent of U.S. nuclear power plants
achieved a capacity factor of 70 percent or higher. Excluding
the two units that did not operate at all during the year, 97
percent of America's nuclear power plants achieved capacity
factors of 70 percent or higher. In 1980, only 19 percent of
U.S. nuclear power plants operated at that level.
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Record-breaking performance propels industry
into 21st century
Since 1980, more than 40 U.S. nuclear power plants have
entered service. The number of nuclear power plants in commercial
service now stands at 103, up from 68 in 1980.
U.S. nuclear power plant performance reached an
all-time high in 1999. Power plant performance is commonly measured by
capacity factor, which expresses the amount of electricity actually
produced by a plant compared with the maximum achievable. U.S. nuclear
power plants achieved a record capacity factor of 86.8 percent in
1999, significantly higher than the 1980 average of 57.6 percent.
Excluding the two plants that didn't operate last year, the 1999
average capacity factor for the remaining plants was 88.5 percent.
Ninety-seven percent of U.S. nuclear plants operated
at a capacity factor of 70 percent or better; only 19 percent achieved
that level in 1980. Eighty-seven percent had a capacity factor of 80
percent or higher in 1999, compared with only 6 percent in 1980.
Nationally, each percentage point increase in capacity
factor is roughly equivalent to bringing another 1,000 megawatts of
generating capacity on line. Improved nuclear power plant performance
thus helps meet the growing demand for electricity in the United
States.
In 1999, nuclear power plants provided 728 billion
kilowatt-hours, one-fifth of the electricity generated in the United
States. The rise in capacity factor over the past decade is the result
of plant modifications, improved operating and maintenance practices,
and more attention to training of nuclear plant personnel.
Drive for excellence
During the 1980s, U.S. utilities committed to a major nuclear
power plant improvement program. Its success is partly due to the
initiatives of the Institute of Nuclear Power Operations (INPO). INPO
is an industry-sponsored organization that evaluates U.S. nuclear
power plants and sets goals for excellence in operations.
As part of its program, INPO monitors 10 key
performance indicators, such as unplanned automatic shutdowns, safety
system performance and industrial safety. The World Association of
Nuclear Operators (WANO) collects U.S. industry data on these
performance indicators and shares this information with INPO members.
Each of the performance indicators reveals significant improvement
since 1980.
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Unit capability factor is the percentage of
maximum energy generation a plant is capable of supplying. In
1999, the industry's unit capability factor hit an all-time high
of 88.7 percent—up from 87 percent in 1998 and exceeding the
industry's year 2000 goal. U.S. nuclear power plants' unit
capability factor has risen 26 percentage points since 1980—a 41
percent jump. |
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Unplanned automatic scrams are plant shutdowns
caused by some imbalance in operations. They are measured for
7,000 hours of operation (about one year). For the third
consecutive year, the industry's median value was zero, thanks to
the fact that nearly two-thirds of operating plants had no
unplanned scrams. Fewer shutdowns save consumers money by
eliminating utilities' need to buy replacement power and point to
the effectiveness of utility training and maintenance programs. |
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Thermal performance monitors how efficiently a
plant converts thermal energy into electrical output. Similar to a
car getting more miles per gallon of gasoline, a lower thermal
performance figure signifies greater plant efficiency. This
"heat rate" has fallen from 10,504 Btu to produce a
kilowatt-hour of electricity in 1980 to 10,082 Btu in 1999. |
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Collective radiation exposure has trended downward
since 1980 at both boiling water reactors (BWRs) and pressurized
water reactors (PWRs). At BWRs, radiation exposures fell from 859
man-rem per unit in 1980 to 172 in 1999. At PWRs, exposures fell
from 417 man-rem per unit in 1980 to a record low of 98 in 1999.
The declines show the effectiveness of radiological protection
programs. |
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Industrial safety accident rates have seen a near
tenfold improvement since 1980. Industrial accidents now number
0.34 per 200,000 worker-hours, making the commercial nuclear
energy industry one of the safest places to work in America. By
comparison, the accident rate for U.S. private industry was 2.3
per 200,000 worker-hours in 1998—the last year figures are
available from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. |
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Volume of solid low-level radioactive waste
produced both by PWRs and BWRs was less than the industry's goals
for the year 2000. Low-level waste volume from PWRs averaged 22
cubic meters in 1999, substantially better than the 500 cubic
meters produced in 1980. The typical BWR generated 85 cubic meters
of low-level waste in 1999, down from 950 cubic meters in 1980 |
Nuclear electricity: Becoming more competitive
The nuclear industry is a mature business. Nuclear power
plants are operating more safely, more productively and more
competitively. Since 1980, the industry has made significant changes
in the way it operates nuclear power plants. These changes, which
required increased staffing and safety improvement work, boosted plant
performance, reliability and output. At the same time, they pushed up
operating and maintenance (O&M) costs.
As these changes became institutionalized in utility
programs, however, O&M costs stabilized. Average O&M costs for
nuclear plants—measured in 1998 dollars—were 1.83 cents/kWh in
1990, 1.44 cents in 1995 and 1.35 cents in 1998 (latest data
available), based on figures from the Utility Data Institute, an
independent research organization. Moreover, nuclear energy is
competitive with other sources of electricity. With average production
costs—O&M plus fuel—of 2.13 cents/kWh in 1998, nuclear is only
marginally more costly than coal at 2.07 cents/kWh, and considerably
less expensive than natural gas at 3.30 cents/kWh and oil at 3.24
cents/kWh.
To help improve efficiency, the U.S. nuclear energy
industry has created mechanisms to share good economic practices. A
major industrywide benchmarking program was launched in 1995 to study
work management and outage management practices at top-performing
plants both in the United States and overseas.
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