FULTON, Mo. (Dec. 22, 2020) – Ameren Missouri’s Callaway Energy Center in Fulton, Missouri, has completed its 24th planned refueling and maintenance outage, enabling it to continue to serve as a reliable source for carbon-free energy for customers.
The Callaway Energy Center, which generates approximately 25% of the energy for Ameren Missouri’s 1.2 million customers, undergoes refueling periods every 18 months. Approximately one-third of Callaway's fuel assemblies were replaced during the outage at the 1,285-megawatt nuclear facility. The downtime was also used for maintenance and equipment upgrades, so the facility can operate safely and efficiently for the long term. Customers experienced no disruption in service during this time.
"We’re pleased that the refueling was completed safely and that the Callaway Energy Center is once again delivering carbon-free energy to our customers,” said Barry Cox, site vice president. "Working safely is always critical during this process, and this year, we had the added layer of completing this work while also maintaining a safe work environment during the COVID-19 pandemic.”
Ameren Missouri designed a virtual reality training so employees could prepare for the refuel remotely during the pandemic. The training enabled employees to practice recognizing potential safety hazards using a three-dimensional model of the Callaway Energy Center. The project earned Ameren Missouri a 2020 Public Utilities Fortnightly Foremost Innovator award.
Approximately 800 additional workers joined Ameren Missouri to support the refueling and maintenance projects, providing an economic boost to the state.
The ongoing, efficient operation of the Callaway Energy Center, and Ameren Missouri’s other energy centers, are key to the company’s goal to achieving net-zero carbon emissions by 2050 while keeping rates affordable for customers.
Ameren Missouri has been providing electric and gas service for more than 100 years, and the company's electric rates are among the lowest in the nation. Ameren Missouri's mission is to power the quality of life for its 1.2 million electric and 132,000 natural gas customers in central and eastern Missouri. The company's service area covers 64 counties and more than 500 communities, including the greater St. Louis area. For more information, visit Ameren.com/Missouri or follow us on Twitter at @AmerenMissouri or Facebook.com/AmerenMissouri.