NEWPORT, Mich., Dec. 5, 2010 /PRNewswire/ -- The Fermi 2 Nuclear Power Plant returned to service today when operators synchronized the plant to the Detroit Edison electrical system, following a safe, successful refueling and maintenance outage that began Oct. 24. Currently operating at about 25 percent power, the plant will gradually increase to full power over the next several days.
"The Fermi 2 team completed an enormous amount of work during the outage, while always keeping safety as the top priority," said Jack Davis, senior vice president and Chief Nuclear Officer. "This maintenance work will help us to continue sending clean, safe energy to our customers in southeast Michigan."
Besides replacing about a third of the fuel in the reactor, Fermi 2 workers performed more than 3,400 separate inspections and equipment maintenance activities, including replacement of one of the two main unit transformers, and inspection and maintenance on the plant's high-pressure turbine and main generator.
More than 1,300 supplemental workers were at Fermi 2 to support the large amount of work. Many of those workers were from the local southeast Michigan area.
Fermi 2, a 1,140-megawatt nuclear power plant, is owned and operated by Detroit Edison, a subsidiary of DTE Energy. DTE Energy is a Detroit-based diversified energy company involved in the development and management of energy-related businesses and services nationwide. Its operating units include Detroit Edison, an electric utility serving 2.1 million customers in Southeastern Michigan, MichCon, a natural gas utility serving 1.2 million customers in Michigan and other non-utility, energy businesses focused on gas storage and pipelines, unconventional gas production, power and industrial projects, and energy trading. Information about DTE Energy is available at dteenergy.com and at twitter.com/dte_energy.
Detroit Edison
CONTACT: Guy Cerullo, +1-734-586-4167
Web Site: http://www.dteenergy.com/
