Kewaunee Nuclear Power Plant

Fluor performed engineering, design and procurement services for plant modifications and improvements to Wisconsin Public Service Corporation's Kewaunee Nuclear Power Plant. Fluor also provided on-site engineering and technical personnel during refueling outages for hands-on supervision of installations and subsequent pre-operational testing prior to turnover to the Kewaunee operations staff.

Client's Challenge

As the plant's original architect/engineer and construction manager, Fluor began engineering on this 540-MWe Westinghouse two-loop pressurized water reactor back in 1967. During the original construction, Fluor provided engineering and design services, licensing assistance, construction management, cost and schedule control, document control, quality assurance, quality control and start-up assistance for the unit.

Three-region cycled core designed to burn slightly enriched uranium dioxide was the fuel to heat steam to 750 psig @510 degrees full load with a single reheat. The turbine was a tandem compound, four flow exhaust with extraction for five stages of feedwater heating.

Fluor's Solution

Since start of commercial operation in 1974, Fluor has continued to provide engineering services of preliminary design and comparative cost estimating for alternative designs in plant modification and optimization, as well as detailed engineering, design, specification preparation and drafting services.

Fluor engineered major plant additions including: a new security system, plant computer replacement, Bulletin 79-01 component replacements, Bulletin 79-14 piping review, Three Mile Island-required modifications and Appendix R fire protection modifications.

Conclusion

The plant began operation in June 1974. In the first three years of operating history, there were no sustained forced outages.

For its time, Kewaunee had the best operating record of any nuclear power plant in the U.S. as published by the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NUREG 0020-12 December 1976).