Constellation Energy’s Limerick Clean Energy Center in Pennsylvania has been approved for a $167-million upgrade by the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC).
According to Constellation’s Tuesday press release, NRC approved a license amendment that greenlights Limerick’s Digital Modernization Project. The upgrade is part of a $5.1 billion investment across Pennsylvania to preserve 5,100 megawatts of power and add 1,200 new megawatts to further stabilize energy prices.
The upgrade is “a first‑of‑its‑kind upgrade across major control and protection systems that will enhance reliability, diagnostic capability and cyber resilience at one of the nation’s top-rated nuclear facilities,” Constellation said.
As part of the project, select analog instrumentation will be replaced by new digital platforms that are designed to improve equipment monitoring, offer a wider range of automation and support additional operational flexibility, Constellation said.
The project will be completed in phases, with physical installation of the digital control rooms being planned to be completed during upcoming refueling outages, Constellation said.
This is the first large-scale demonstration of a digital safety system upgrade at an U.S. nuclear plant, supported by the Department of Energy’s Light Water Reactor Sustainability Program, according to the release.
The DOE Light Water Reactor Sustainability Program conducts research to develop technologies to improve the economics and reliability and extend the operation of the current fleet.
Located 35 miles northwest of Philadelphia, Limerick Clean Energy Center, formerly known as Limerick Generating Station, has two boiling water reactors that collectively generate 2,317 megawatts.