On Thursday night, August 16, OPPD’s Board of Directors authorized management to enter into an operating services agreement with Exelon Generation, LLC to manage Fort Calhoun Station’s nuclear operations for up to the duration of its operating license.

Exelon Nuclear Partners, a division of Exelon Generation, has been assisting with the recovery of the plant since January 2012. This agreement will increase Exelon’s involvement in the management of the plant.

“While we have made significant progress in our recovery efforts, this operating agreement will help take Fort Calhoun Station to the next level,” said Gary Gates, OPPD president and chief executive officer. “By applying the Exelon Nuclear Management Model and the proven best practices from a world-class nuclear fleet like Exelon, we can ensure the sustainability and productivity of Fort Calhoun for the future.”

OPPD will remain the owner and licensed operator of the plant, while Exelon will provide the day-to-day operations management of the plant. The Exelon Nuclear Management Model will be used to improve and sustain performance at Fort Calhoun Station. The plant staff will be a blended team of OPPD and Exelon employees.

“This arrangement is consistent with other business models being used for single-unit nuclear utilities,” said Gary. “It provides the economies of scale and expertise of a large fleet, while still maintaining local ownership and providing OPPD customers-owners with the most cost-efficient way of providing reliable and affordable power.”

It is OPPD’s intention to remain a member of the Utilities Service Alliance, though OPPD officials note that their members on some of USA’s teams may change as their new site organizational structure evolves. More details about Fort Calhoun’s involvement in USA will be released as they are known. 

Fort Calhoun Station has been offline for a scheduled refueling outage since April 9, 2011. During that time, the employees of OPPD successfully protected the plant during the historic Missouri River flooding. The station has been working to get the plant operational and is working with the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) on the current regulatory issues.

OPPD’s Fort Calhoun Station will remain in the current offline status until all issues have been addressed and OPPD’s leadership determines it is safe to restart and the NRC agrees.