Diablo Canyon Unit 2 taken off-line for maintenance
Operators at Pacific Gas and Electric Company’s Diablo Canyon Power Plant safely took Unit 2 off-line on Thursday evening, Aug. 14, in order to perform necessary maintenance on two backup diesel generators, the company reports in a press release. Unit 1 continues to operate at full power.
Each unit at Diablo Canyon has three backup diesel generators, which are used to power systems and components in the unlikely event of a loss of off-site power. Plant specifications require that two of the three diesel generators on each unit be operable at all times.
During routine maintenance on one of Unit 2’s diesel generators, plant crews determined that a fastener, or a bolt, associated with the fuel oil system was not performing as designed and needed to be replaced. Similar inspections were performed on the other Unit 2 diesel generators and a second generator was found to have a similar condition. Unit 1 inspections revealed no issues. As a result, Unit 2 was safely removed from service as required by conservative plant specifications. Repairs are underway to resolve the issue at which time Unit 2 will be safely returned to service.
There was no impact to the health and safety of the public and all off-site power was available during this maintenance activity.
About Diablo Canyon Power Plant
Diablo Canyon Power Plant is a nuclear power facility owned and operated by PG&E. Its two units together produce approximately 2,300 net megawatts of carbon-free power. It provides more than 20 percent of the electricity that PG&E delivers to its customers, or enough energy to meet the needs of more than three million Northern and Central Californians. Diablo Canyon has a $920 million annual local economic impact and is the largest private employer in San Luis Obispo County.
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