Basic Facts:
- Location: Palo, Iowa
- Owner: NextEra Energy (Majority)
- Operator: NextEra Energy
- Construction Cost: $1,400M (2018$)
- Plant Output: 600 MW
- Property Size: 500 acres
- Status: SAFSTOR
- Employees: 500
- Current DTF Balance: $470M (2018$)
- Decommissioning Cost Estimate: $610M (2018$)
- Spent Nuclear Fuel on Site: 566 metric tons
Background
The Duane Arnold plant is a 600 MW boiling water reactor located on the west bank of the Cedar River near Palo, Iowa. Construction began in 1970 and the plant began licensed operations in 1975. In 2018, the plant owners announced that due to economic considerations, Duane Arnold would cease operations in 2020, 14-years before its license was set to expire. The plant permanently shut down on August 10, 2020.
Decommissioning
In its Post-Shutdown Decommissioning Activities Report, NextEra stated that by 2023 it plans to move all spent nuclear fuel to dry cask storage and transition the plant into SAFSTOR. NextEra has stated it intends to begin full decommissioning activities in 2075.
Socioeconomics
The Duane Arnold plant is located within Linn County, Iowa. As of 2016, socioeconomic information is as follows:
- Population: 220,000
- Per Capita Annual Income: $49,000
- Unemployment rate (not seasonally adjusted): 3.4%
The Duane Arnold Energy Center employs 500 full-time workers with annual payroll totaling $85M. The plant pays approximately $3M in direct state and local property taxes each year
Contact Information
Economic Development Administration Representative:
- Steve Castaner, Denver Regional Office, t: (573) 590-1194, e: scastaner@eda.gov
Economic Development District
Nuclear Regulatory Commission
- Viktoria Mitlyng, Project Manager, t: (630) 829-9662, e: viktoria.mitlyng@nrc.gov
- Duane Arnold Energy Center
Unless specific costing information has been provided, decommissioning costs were derived from 2017 Decommissioning Funding Status Report.
Information herein obtained from public sources. Corrections are welcome and may be directed to info@decommissioningcollaborative.org.