Wolf Creek Generating Station Explained

Wolf Creek Generating Station
Coordinates:38.2389°N -95.6889°W
Country:United States
Location:Hampden Township, Coffey County, near Burlington, Kansas
Status:O
Cost: (2007)[1]
Owner:Evergy (94%)
Kansas Electric Power Cooperative (6%)
Operator:Wolf Creek Nuclear Operating Corporation (WCNOC)
Np Reactor Type:PWR
Np Reactor Supplier:Westinghouse
Ps Cooling Source:Coffey County Lake (pumped from the John Redmond Reservoir and the Neosho River)
Ps Units Operational:1 × 1200 MW
Ps Units Manu Model:WH 4-loop (DRYAMB)
Ps Thermal Capacity:1 × 3565 MWth
Ps Electrical Capacity:1200
Ps Electrical Cap Fac:101.29% (2017)
84.90% (lifetime)
Ps Annual Generation:10,648 GWh (2017)
Extra: Wolf Creek Generating Station logo

Wolf Creek Generating Station is a nuclear power plant located near Burlington, Kansas. It occupies 9818acres of the total controlled by the owner. Its namesake, Wolf Creek, was dammed to create Coffey County Lake (formerly Wolf Creek Lake), and provides water for the condensers.

History

Construction started on May 30, 1977[2] and it was commissioned on September 3, 1985, at a cost of (in 2007 value).[1]

This plant has one Westinghouse pressurized water reactor that came online on June 4, 1985. The reactor was rated at 1,170 MW(e). A new turbine generator rotor was installed in 2011 that increased electrical output to approximately 1250 MW(e). The reactor output remained unchanged at 3565 MW (th).

On October 4, 2006, the operator applied to the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) for a renewal and extension of the plant's operating license.[3] The NRC granted the renewal on November 20, 2008, extending the license from forty years to sixty.[4]

On January 13, 2012, at 2 p.m., due to a breaker failure and an unexplained loss of power to an electrical transformer, the plant experienced an automatic reactor trip and loss of offsite power that lasted 3 hours.[5]

The nuclear plant was a target of an unsuccessful cyberattack by hackers in 2017,[6] leading to indictments in 2021.[7]

Generation (MWh) of Wolf Creek Generating Station[8] !Year!Jan!Feb!Mar!Apr!May!Jun!Jul!Aug!Sep!Oct!Nov!Dec!Annual (Total)
2001888,118803,086833,873855,348878,063853,966873,972874,542853,335887,293857,462887,59310,346,651
2002888,357799,266608,94541,519623,618849,793872,827873,897850,467886,975858,367887,6719,041,702
2003831,072801,210885,555854,714882,299850,274872,780805,442848,540462,620-12,790807,9518,889,667
2004883,896721,298881,977853,917879,963846,910837,005810,094842,667833,054856,664885,29110,132,736
2005618,685716,081884,712209,235329,357846,487869,375871,289847,341884,564857,647886,1728,820,945
2006886,275800,601887,370855,828883,329846,602869,974869,842847,422155,136560,443887,4479,350,269
2007887,999801,514881,725858,366879,108847,151870,017866,697848,194882,895859,137886,33310,369,136
2008718,760827,848463,799-8,726437,666846,724870,912865,376847,526883,317858,061885,8978,497,160
2009885,692797,548872,111786,064819,918843,949869,102700,728848,675242,473213,432888,8568,768,548
2010882,985803,221653,886857,453883,604841,746863,933865,496847,441426,678855,523773,7469,555,712
2011883,547796,991498,103-6,128-25,6297,448773,763873,223861,524896,251864,063895,7327,318,888
2012357,418-11,00582,077869,918888,242855,202837,483877,801861,144900,138863,023903,4838,284,924
2013901,52372,505-7,587327,330611,551842,579882,785883,930292,148582,132874,919904,4867,168,301
2014900,328816,789184,526-10,781494,964862,500890,551885,769867,614904,318852,083909,7238,558,384
2015909,980786,680-7,224-16,253761,833862,928885,723887,146864,625904,321880,443909,9768,630,178
2016910,276845,851907,060878,858903,726860,319877,570884,90824,882-5,464245,456912,6008,246,042
2017912,867824,017910,867874,267907,330869,095882,648893,575870,511906,549884,220912,04110,647,987
2018912,386822,973875,324-7,752351,294865,039885,908887,951870,926908,933884,279911,0289,168,289
2019911,787823,970911,644881,581906,465870,229890,153893,065570,296-7,683683,874912,3539,247,734
2020911,525791,946911,466882,418906,774867,876889,607892,895871,477908,720840,655907,12310,582,482
2021911,616823,212676,4190428,191646,808893,228778,463870,455853,713855,977836,6508,574,732
2022913,572801,347857,428825,608899,673867,172763,282890,127869,681135,9147,823,804
2023

Ownership

The Wolf Creek Nuclear Operating Corporation, a Delaware corporation, operates the power plant. The ownership is divided between the Evergy (94%), and Kansas Electric Power Cooperative, Inc. (6%).

Surrounding population

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

The 2010 U.S. population within of Wolf Creek was 5,466, a decrease of 2.8 percent in a decade, according to an analysis of U.S. Census data for msnbc.com. The 2010 U.S. population within was 176,656, a decrease of 1.7 percent since 2000. Cities within 50 miles include Emporia (30 miles to city center).[10]

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 Wolf Creek was 0.0019%, or 1 in 55,556, according to an NRC study published in August 2010.[11] [12]

External links

Notes and References

  1. Web site: EIA - State Nuclear Profiles. www.eia.gov. October 3, 2017. en.
  2. Web site: Wolf Creek, United States Of America . World Nuclear Association . World Nuclear Association . November 24, 2023.
  3. Web site: Wolf Creek Generating Station - License Renewal Application . December 1, 2008 . Operating Reactor Licensing . Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) . January 4, 2009 .
  4. Web site: Wolf Creek licence extended 20 years . November 21, 2008 . . January 4, 2009 .
  5. Web site: Regulators to inspect nuclear power plant in Kansas . Power Engineering . PennWell Corporation . January 13, 2021 . January 25, 2012.
  6. News: Hackers targeting Wolf Creek and other nuclear power plants. Finger. Stan. The Wichita Eagle. July 6, 2017. July 7, 2017.
  7. Web site: Rosenberg . Martin . Inside Story: Kansas, Cyber Spies, Nuclear Power and the Ukraine War . Flatland . April 6, 2022.
  8. Web site: Electricity Data Browser . January 4, 2023 . www.eia.gov.
  9. https://www.nrc.gov/reading-rm/doc-collections/fact-sheets/emerg-plan-prep-nuc-power-bg.html
  10. Web site: 2011-04-14 . Nuclear neighbors: Population rises near US reactors . 2024-08-16 . NBC News . en.
  11. Web site: 2011-03-16 . What are the odds? US nuke plants ranked by quake risk . 2024-08-16 . NBC News . en.
  12. Web site: Archived copy . April 19, 2011 . https://web.archive.org/web/20170525170632/http://msnbcmedia.msn.com/i/msnbc/Sections/NEWS/quake%20nrc%20risk%20estimates.pdf . May 25, 2017 . dead .

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