U.S. nuclear output rises as Southern boosts Hatch 2 in Georgia

U.S. nuclear-power production rose for a second day as Southern Co. increased output from the Hatch 2 unit in Georgia.

Power generation gained by 414 megawatts, or 0.5 percent, from yesterday to 85,234 megawatts, or 84 percent of capacity, according to filings with the Nuclear Regulatory Commission and data compiled by Bloomberg.

Output was 4.7 percent higher than a year ago. Seventeen of the 104 U.S. reactors are offline.

Southern boosted the 883-megawatt Hatch 2 reactor to 86 percent of capacity from 50 percent. The unit was shut from Oct. 22 to Oct. 29 for planned maintenance to replace a relief valve, the Atlanta-based company said in a statement then.

The Hatch 1 reactor at the plant about 74 miles (119 kilometers) west of Savannah is at full power.

Progress Energy Inc. raised production at the 937-megawatt Brunswick 2 reactor in North Carolina to 94 percent of capacity from 85 percent. The 938-megawatt Brunswick 1 is operating at full power. The plant is located at Cape Fear on the Atlantic Ocean, 130 miles south of Raleigh.

Reactor maintenance and outages, usually undertaken in the U.S. spring or fall when energy consumption is lowest, can increase consumption of natural gas and coal to generate electricity. The average U.S. reactor refueling outage lasted 40 days in 2010, according to the Nuclear Energy Institute.

--Editors: Charlotte Porter, Bill Banker

To contact the reporter on this story: Colin McClelland in Toronto at cmcclelland1bloomberg.net

To contact the editor responsible for this story: Dan Stets at dstetsbloomberg.net