The Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) has extended the operating licenses by 20-years for three reactors in Illinois.
NRC extended Constellation Energy’s Clinton Clean Energy Center’s Unit 1 in Clinton, Ill. and Dresden Clean Energy Center’s Units 2 and 3 near Morris, Ill., according to NRC’s Tuesday press release.
Clinton Unit 1’s boiling water reactor license will now expire in April 2047. Dresden Unit 2 and 3’s boiling water reactor licenses now expire in December 2049 and January 2051, respectively.
This marks the initial 20-year license renewal for the Clinton plant, extending its total potential lifespan to 60 years. This marks the second license extension for the Dresden plant, giving it a potential service life of 80 years.
Clinton is a single-reactor plant that produces 1,080 megawatts and Dresden is a three-reactor plant that generates 1,845 megawatts. Dresden has two active reactors in Units 2 and 3, while Unit 1 ceased operations in 1978.
Constellation Executive Vice President and Chief Generation Officer Bryan Hanson applauded the extension in the company’s Tuesday press release:
“In the last ten years, we’ve invested over $3 billion in our high-performing Illinois nuclear facilities to power the state’s economy with clean, reliable energy,” Hanson said. “These license extensions will allow Clinton and Dresden to stay online for another two decades, preserving more than 2,200 family-sustaining jobs and $8.1 billion in federal, state and local tax dollars.”
Constellation said it is investing more than $370 million to relicense the plants, installing upgrades to increase efficiency and ensure safety and continued reliability.
Though the two Illinois plants received regulatory approval needed to continue operations, the actual operation of the plants is contingent on their respective financial viability, Constellation said.
Earlier this year, Meta struck a deal with Constellation for a 20-year power purchase agreement where the tech giant would buy electricity from the Clinton plant. Starting in June 2027, the deal supports the relicensing and continued operation of the Clinton after the state’s ratepayer-funded zero emission credit program ends in May 2027.