Indian Point reactor returns to service after $100M refueling

Indian Point Energy Center’s Unit 3 reactor, one of two operating at the nuclear power plant in Buchanan, returned to service Thursday after a $100 million scheduled refueling and maintenance outage that began in March.

The plant’s owner, Entergy Corp., spent that money on refueling, maintenance and inspections over the two-month period. The company said in a press release that the investment  shows its commitment to providing safe power to the region before it shuts down permanently in four years. Under an agreement reached with Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo’s office in January, Entergy will retire both Indian Point reactors by 2021.

Nearly 2,000 workers, including 1,000 contractors, were involved in the outage work, according to the company.

Indian Point Unit 2 will temporarily go offline for its final refueling and maintenance outage next spring before it is retired on April 30, 2020. Unit 3 will undergo one more refueling outage before it permanently shuts down exactly one year after Unit 2’s closing.

The two units together generate 2,000 megawatts of electricity.