St. Lucie Nuclear Power Plant

St. Lucie Nuclear Power Plant
Overhead view of St. Lucie Nuclear Power Plant
CountryUnited States
LocationPort St. Lucie, St. Lucie County, Florida
Coordinates27°20′55″N 80°14′47″W / 27.34861°N 80.24639°W / 27.34861; -80.24639
StatusOperational
Construction beganUnit 1: July 1, 1970
Unit 2: June 2, 1977
Commission dateUnit 1: December 21, 1976
Unit 2: August 8, 1983
Construction cost$4.614 billion (2007 USD)[1]
OwnerFlorida Power & Light
OperatorFlorida Power & Light
Nuclear power station
Reactor typePWR
Reactor supplierCombustion Engineering
Cooling sourceAtlantic Ocean
Thermal capacity2 × 3020 MWth
Power generation
Units operational2 × 940 MW [2]
Make and modelCE 2-loop (DRYAMB)
Nameplate capacity1,880 MW [2]
Capacity factor95.29% (2017)
84.05% (lifetime)
Annual net output14,153 GWh (2021)
External links
WebsiteSt. Lucie Nuclear Plant
CommonsRelated media on Commons

St. Lucie Nuclear Power Plant is a twin nuclear power station located on Hutchinson Island, near Port St. Lucie in St. Lucie County, Florida. Both units are Combustion Engineering pressurized water reactors. Florida Power & Light commissioned Unit 1 in 1976 and Unit 2 in 1983 and continues to operate the station. Minor shares of Unit 2 are owned by the Florida Municipal Power Agency (8.81%) and the Orlando Utilities Commission (6.08%).

The plant contains two nuclear reactors in separate containment buildings, and uses nearby ocean water for cooling.

The construction of Unit 2, in 59 months and for $1.42B (1984 USD), has been cited as being partly due to successful project management. [3][4] Florida Power & Light created a structure which "consisted of both FPL and Ebasco personnel integrated into one organization" [3].

In 2003 the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) extended the operating licenses of the St. Lucie units by twenty years, to March 1, 2036 for Unit 1 and April 6, 2043 for Unit 2. In 2021 an application was filed with the NRC for a subsequent 20 year license renewal.[5]

Extended power update

In 2012, Extended Power Update modifications were completed, increasing the electric output from approximately 853 MW to 1,002 MW. The project involved replacing pipes, valves, pumps, heat exchangers, electrical transformers, and generators, some of which were original components of the plant.[6][7]

Electricity production

Generation (MWh) of St. Lucie Nuclear Power Plant[8]
Year Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec Annual (Total)
2001 1,279,964 1,152,193 1,191,863 707,773 1,166,289 1,208,322 1,224,673 1,261,433 1,257,951 1,225,825 1,109,734 651,066 13,437,086
2002 1,257,614 1,132,666 1,277,364 1,270,433 1,226,570 1,260,307 1,226,180 1,258,768 1,170,595 748,035 1,224,764 1,277,141 14,330,437
2003 1,275,678 1,150,578 1,267,927 897,407 634,992 845,616 1,269,451 1,270,333 1,213,963 1,260,749 1,226,294 1,079,016 13,392,004
2004 1,271,564 1,179,471 1,047,578 688,290 1,266,052 1,218,199 1,261,575 1,256,661 459,372 1,114,226 1,219,307 1,123,434 13,105,729
2005 657,658 811,664 1,263,896 1,219,975 1,255,421 1,214,753 1,251,099 1,211,355 1,200,381 839,092 601,381 842,635 12,369,310
2006 1,143,473 1,140,647 1,262,519 1,038,256 636,101 886,443 1,253,609 1,254,528 1,205,302 1,246,023 1,202,625 1,239,695 13,509,221
2007 1,261,653 1,143,553 1,259,140 609,350 676,573 1,210,873 1,248,036 943,668 1,168,004 626,719 616,172 625,754 11,389,495
2008 1,111,351 1,026,980 1,254,363 1,230,022 1,272,167 1,140,516 1,274,735 1,139,404 1,220,223 1,008,012 800,697 1,281,862 13,760,332
2009 1,284,034 1,162,264 1,256,792 1,074,529 638,925 923,915 918,838 1,255,686 790,957 1,245,577 1,222,384 1,280,857 13,054,758
2010 1,268,012 1,163,128 1,232,898 506,871 633,376 648,540 1,115,468 1,107,521 1,162,957 1,268,851 1,237,392 1,285,379 12,630,393
2011 665,606 577,883 637,182 593,443 996,384 1,210,703 1,285,712 1,131,161 1,241,306 1,063,997 1,040,228 664,151 11,107,756
2012 662,475 893,828 645,408 654,923 891,513 1,150,263 1,029,895 791,423 661,022 708,426 790,334 1,379,949 10,259,459
2013 1,504,421 1,358,823 1,030,537 1,428,195 1,469,986 1,327,843 1,497,946 1,487,721 1,393,654 746,636 1,075,620 1,298,529 15,619,911
2014 1,503,609 1,360,573 787,237 858,892 1,494,246 1,417,842 1,336,427 1,353,070 1,419,951 1,479,589 1,303,884 1,502,254 15,817,574
2015 1,506,481 1,237,641 1,252,070 593,003 1,485,412 1,440,480 1,499,099 1,420,471 867,682 847,970 1,431,959 1,492,996 15,075,264
2016 1,493,947 1,409,324 1,497,913 1,449,012 1,490,928 1,432,343 1,481,288 789,413 1,298,258 543,538 1,198,890 1,501,708 15,586,562
2017 1,482,601 957,494 882,240 1,448,133 1,494,814 1,449,325 1,494,275 1,484,117 1,382,972 1,399,853 1,449,723 1,502,373 16,427,920
2018 1,511,420 1,356,200 1,010,416 1,163,105 1,494,768 1,443,949 1,472,587 1,256,690 705,987 1,200,465 1,445,422 1,501,572 15,562,581
2019 1,507,966 1,366,005 1,506,782 1,314,475 745,160 940,204 1,491,455 1,482,733 1,071,040 1,045,921 990,694 1,503,193 14,965,628
2020 1,505,458 1,076,922 1,032,815 1,453,359 1,495,624 1,442,615 1,471,461 1,476,561 1,418,384 1,480,741 1,439,715 1,506,715 16,800,370
2021 1,411,571 1,360,091 1,501,864 935,022 1,061,074 1,439,066 1,481,220 1,373,682 708,539 -- 1,441,954 1,439,600 14,153,683
2022 1,131,926 1,352,129 1,488,798 1,440,765 1,489,330 1,410,683 1,475,801 1,478,304 750,791 1,375,940 1,402,500 1,492,818 16,289,785
2023 1,495,043 1,074,270 1,034,279 1,444,507 1,485,557 1,429,982 1,445,283 1,478,483 1,420,496 1,480,388 1,433,522 1,239,626 16,461,436
2024 1,294,660 1,407,137 928,579 1,107,948 1,470,946 1,171,234 1,401,958 1,352,899 709,854 898,172 1,370,889 1,502,157 14,616,433
2025 1,507,401 1,355,094 1,498,754 1,420,513 1,496,021 1,445,442 1,489,968 1,445,495 1,129,156 744,191 1,424,834 1,501,258 16,458,127
2026 --

Surrounding population

The Nuclear Regulatory Commission defines two emergency planning zones around nuclear power plants: a plume exposure pathway zone with a radius of 10 miles (16 km), concerned primarily with exposure to, and inhalation of, airborne radioactive contamination, and an ingestion pathway zone of about 50 miles (80 km), concerned primarily with ingestion of food and liquid contaminated by radioactivity.[9]

The 2010 U.S. population within 10 miles (16 km) of Saint Lucie was 206,596, an increase of 49.7 percent in a decade, according to an analysis of U.S. Census data for msnbc.com. The 2010 U.S. population within 50 miles (80 km) was 1,271,947, an increase of 37.0 percent since 2000. Cities within 50 miles include Port St. Lucie (7.8 miles to city center), Ft. Pierce (8 miles to city center), Stuart (10.4 miles to city center), and West Palm Beach (42 miles to city center).

Seismic risk

The Nuclear Regulatory Commission's estimate of the risk each year of an earthquake intense enough to cause core damage to the reactor at Saint Lucie was 1 in 21,739, according to an NRC study published in August 2010.[10][11]

Hurricane risk

In 2016 St. Lucie Power Plant shut down because of Hurricane Matthew.[12] In 2017 the plant did not shut down due to Hurricane Irma.[13]

Turtle conservation and barrier nets

Conservation efforts to promote sea turtles are conducted with federal (National Marine Fisheries Service, NMFS) and state agencies (Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Committee, FFWCC ).[14] The plant is granted a marine turtle permit by FFWCC and authorized to conduct turtle activities such as: net capture, tagging, nesting surveys, hand capture, nest relocation, rescue, and release of hatchlings, stranding and salvage activities.[15]

Five species of sea turtles inhabit Florida waters; loggerhead, green, leatherback, hawksbill, and Kemp’s ridley sea turtles.[16] Every year, around 800-950 sea turtles, many juvenile, enter the offshore intake structures, and pass through one of three 12- to 16-foot diameter pipes which run approximately 3/4 mile (3–5 minutes) toward the start of the plant's intake canal.[17] Turtles that enter the canal must be removed manually through a capture program. In 1978, an 8-inch square mesh barrier net was erected east of the A1A bridge to restrict the movement of turtles moving down the canal system towards the plant. A 10-inch UIDS (Underwater intrusion detection system) barrier net was added downstream in the canal near the intake wells. In January 1996, responding to a larger number of small green turtles entering the intake system, a 5-inch square mesh barrier net was added upstream and east of the 8-inch net.[18] Turtles that are captured are documented and returned to the ocean.

See also

References

  1. ^ "EIA - State Nuclear Profiles". Eia.gov. Retrieved 3 October 2017.
  2. ^ a b "St. Lucie Nuclear Power Plant | Florida Department of Environmental Protection". floridadep.gov. Retrieved 2020-01-15.
  3. ^ a b Derrickson, Bill (17 October 1982). "ST. LUCIE UNIT 2 A NUCLEAR PLANT BUILT ON SCHEDULE" (PDF). Archived (PDF) from the original on 26 January 2021. Retrieved 14 December 2025.
  4. ^ Krellenstein, James (11 December 2025). "Can This Nuclear Renaissance Avoid The Last One's Mistakes?".{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  5. ^ "St. Lucie Plant, Units 1 & 2 – Subsequent License Renewal Application". 15 December 2025.
  6. ^ "HomeTown News Gift Certificates". Myhometownnews.net. Retrieved 5 August 2018.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: deprecated archival service (link)
  7. ^ [1]
  8. ^ "Electricity Data Browser". www.eia.gov. Retrieved 2025-12-03.
  9. ^ "NRC: Backgrounder on Emergency Preparedness for Nuclear Power Plants". Archived from the original on 2006-10-02. Retrieved 2017-06-25.
  10. ^ Bill Dedman (March 17, 2011), "What are the odds? US nuke plants ranked by quake risk", Msnbc.com, retrieved April 19, 2011
  11. ^ "Archived copy" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 2017-05-25. Retrieved 2011-06-17.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  12. ^ "St. Lucie Power Plant shut down because of Hurricane Matthew". Tcpalm.com. Retrieved 5 August 2018.
  13. ^ "FPL nuclear facilities weathered Irma without sustaining damage". Tcpalm.com. Retrieved 5 August 2018.
  14. ^ Florida Power and Light Company (November 1995). "Assessment Of The Impacts Of The St. Lucie Nuclear Generating Plant On Sea Turtle Species Found In The Nearshore Waters Of Florida" (PDF). Retrieved October 6, 2025.
  15. ^ "Supplement to Subsequent License Renewal Application Environmental Report" (PDF). U. S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission. January 2025. Retrieved October 6, 2025.
  16. ^ Guertin, Jeff. "St. Lucie Site". Inwater Research Group. Retrieved 2025-10-06.
  17. ^ Salisbury, Susan. "Protective sea turtle grate planned for FPL's St. Lucie plant". The Palm Beach Post. Retrieved 2025-10-06.
  18. ^ Catron, Steve (April 9, 2024). "St. Lucie Units 1 and 2 Docket Nos. 50-335 and 50-389 2023 Annual Environmental Operating Report" (PDF). U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission. Retrieved October 6, 2025.
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