Charlotte, N.C.-based energy utility Duke Energy has submitted an early site permit application to the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) for a site near Stokes County, N.C.
The site will be near Duke’s Belews Creek Station in Stokes County. The submission of the application comes after two years of environmental assessment and technical analysis, Duke said in its Dec. 30 press release.
Belews Creek currently has coal and natural gas-powered generation.
The application is technology neutral, Duke said. It includes six potential reactor technologies, which are four small modular reactors (SMRs) and two non-light water reactors. Large water reactors, like the 11 units the utility already operates, were not included in the application, according to the release.
The utility said the early site permit was pursued as a part of a risk-mitigation strategy for it as it looks at new nuclear generation options. As mentioned in Duke’s 2025 Carolinas Resource Plan, published Oct. 1, the utility has explored new nuclear generation at its Belews Creek site and its William States Lee in Cherokee County, S.C.
Duke said it intends to add 600 megawatts of advanced nuclear energy by 2037, with the first small modular reactor coming online by 2036, according to the release.
“Nuclear energy has and will continue to play an essential role in powering communities in the Carolinas,” Kendal Bowman, Duke’s North Carolina president, said in the release. “Submitting an early site permit application is an important next step in assessing the potential for small modular reactors at the Belews Creek site.”
Along with seeking additional nuclear generation, Duke has sought to extend the operational life of its current fleet. On March 31, NRC approved the license renewal of Duke’s Oconee nuclear plant near Seneca, S.C. to operate into the 2050s. The utility also applied for a second license renewal for its Robinson nuclear plant in Hartsville, S.C.