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Data for 2010  |  Release Date: April 26, 2012  |  Next Release: February 2013  |   full report

California Nuclear Profile 2010 California profile

California total electric power industry, summer capacity and net generation, by energy source, 2010  
Primary energy source Summer capacity
(mw)
Share of State total
(percent)
Net generation
(thousand mwh)
Share of State total
(percent)
Nuclear 4,390 6.5 32,201 15.8
Coal 374 0.6 2,100 1.0
Hydro and Pumped Storage 13,954 20.7 33,260 16.3
Natural Gas 41,370 61.4 107,522 52.7
Other 1 220 0.3 2,534 1.2
Other Renewable1 6,319 9.4 25,450 12.5
Petroleum 701 1.0 1,059 0.5
Total 63,328 100.0 204,126 100.0
1Municipal Solid Waste net generation is allocated according to the biogenic and non-biogenic components of the fuel; however, all Municipal Solid Waste summer capacity is classified as Renewable.
Notes: Totals may not equal sum of components due to independent rounding.
Other: Blast furnace gas, propane gas, other manufactured and waste gases derived from fossil fuels, non-biogenic municipal solid waste, batteries, chemicals, hydrogen, pitch, purchased steam, sulfur, tire-derived fuel, and miscellaneous technologies.
Other Renewable: Wood, black liquor, other wood waste, biogenic municipal solid waste, landfill gas, sludge waste, agriculture byproducts, other biomass, geothermal, solar thermal, photovoltaic energy, and wind.
Sources: Form EIA-860, "Annual Electric Generator Report," and Form EIA-923, "Power Plant Operations Report."

California nuclear power plants, summer capacity and net generation, 2010  
Plant name/total reactors Summer capacity
(mw)
Net generation
(thousand mwh)
Share of State nuclear
net generation (percent)
Owner
Diablo Canyon
Unit 1, Unit 2
2,240 18,430 57.2 Pacific Gas & Electric Co
San Onofre
Unit 2, Unit 3
2,150 13,771 42.8 Southern California Edison Co
2 Plants
4 Reactors
4,390 32,201 100.0  
Note: Totals may not equal sum of components due to independent rounding.
Source: Form EIA-860, "Annual Electric Generator Report," and Form EIA-923, "Power Plant Operations Report."

Plants in State

Diablo Canyon Nuclear Plant 
Unit Summer capacity
(mw)
Net generation
(thousand mwh)
Summer cpacity factor (percent) Type Commercial operation date License expiration date
1 1,122 8,677 88.3 PWR 5/7/1985 11/2/2024
2 1,118 9,752 99.6 PWR 3/13/1986 8/20/2025
  2,240 18,430 93.9      
Data for 2010
PWR = Pressurized Light Water Reactor.
Note: Totals may not equal sum of components due to independent rounding.
Source: Form EIA-860, "Annual Electric Generator Report," and Form EIA-923, "Power Plant Operations Report."

Operator: Pacific Gas & Electric Company

Location and Service Territory: The Diablo Canyon plant is on a 750-acre site in San Luis Obispo County, California.

Construction Cost: $11.556 billion (2007 USD)2

Staffing: 1,200 employees

Reactor Descriptions: Both units at Diablo Canyon are Westinghouse four-loop pressurized water reactors.

Cooling System: Diablo Canyon is cooled using a once-through system that draws water from the Pacific Ocean.


San Onofre Nuclear Power Plant 
Unit Summer capacity
(mw)
Net generation
(thousand mwh)
Summer capacity factor (percent) Type Commercial operation date License expiration date
2 1,070 5,664 60.4 PWR 8/8/1983 2/16/2022
3 1,080 9,835 104.0 PWR 4/1/1984 11/15/2022
  2,150 15,499 82.3      
Data for 2010
PWR = Pressurized Light Water Reactor.
Note: Totals may not equal sum of components due to independent rounding.
Source: Form EIA-860, "Annual Electric Generator Report," and Form EIA-923, "Power Plant Operations Report."

Operator: Southern California Edison Company

Location and Service Territory: This 84-acre site is near San Clemente, California, in San Diego County.

Construction Cost: Units 2 and 3 cost $8.968 billion (2007 USD)2

Staffing: San Onofre Nuclear Generating Station, better known to locals by its acronym (SONGS), has more than 2,000 employees.

Reactor Descriptions: San Onofre houses two Combustion Engineering pressurized water reactors. Each reactor has two steam generating loops.

Cooling System: San Onofre relies on a unique cooling system that uses a 3,000-foot pipe to draw water from the Pacific Ocean. A ‘velocity cap’ diverts fish from the intake. Water is dispersed from 1,500-foot pipes through hundreds of openings, thereby helping maintain a temperature that varies by only a couple of degrees from that of the ocean.


2Nuclear Power Plant Construction Activity, DOE/EIA-0473(86), Energy Information Administration, 1986, pp 16-17, Table 5. Adjusted to 2007 Dollars using Bureau of Labor Statistics' Consumer Price Index.

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