The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission has approved a waiver that strengthens Constellation Energy's plan to restart the Crane nuclear power plant in Pennsylvania, the unit formerly known as Three Mile Island Unit 1. The June 1 decision allows Constellation to transfer 760 megawatts of capacity interconnection rights from its Eddystone power plant near Philadelphia to the Crane unit, increasing the amount of electricity the 835-megawatt reactor can deliver to the grid when it returns to service, possibly in the second half of 2027.
The waiver addresses a hurdle that emerged when PJM Interconnection determined that transmission upgrades, including 765-kilovolt and 500-kilovolt projects, would be needed to deliver all of the unit's output safely. Those upgrades are not expected to be complete until December 2030. Constellation argued in its March 31 filing that running a nuclear unit below rated output for extended periods can cause elevated vibration and equipment wear, creating reliability concerns.
FERC granted the request over objections from PJM's independent market monitor, finding that the transfer solves a concrete problem without harming third parties. Because the Department of Energy has ordered the Eddystone units to keep operating as energy-only resources under emergency orders, their interconnection rights were available for transfer.
Constellation's $1.6 billion restart project is backed by a 20-year agreement to sell all of the unit's energy, capacity, and clean energy attributes to Microsoft for data centers across PJM's Mid-Atlantic and Midwest footprint.
Source: Utility Dive -- https://www.utilitydive.com/news/constellation-three-mile-island-crane-nuclear-ferc-waiver/821836/