Perry Nuclear Generating Station

Perry Nuclear Power Plant
Company type	Nuclear power plant
Industry	Energy
Founded	November 18, 1987; 38 years ago in Perry, Ohio, United States
Headquarters	Perry, United States
Area served	Ohio, United States
Products	Electricity generation (nuclear power)
Owner	Vistra Corporation
Parent	Vistra Corporation

The Perry Nuclear Power Plant is located on a site along Lake Erie, approximately northeast of Cleveland, Ohio. Ownership and operation of the facility are held by Vistra Corporation.

This facility utilizes a General Electric BWR-6 boiling water reactor equipped with a Mark III containment system. Originally, the reactor's core thermal output was rated at 3,579 megawatts, which was increased to 3,758 megawatts thermal in 2000, placing Perry among the highest-powered BWRs in the United States.

Although initially planned to cease operations in 2021 due to financial challenges competing with natural gas plants, Perry’s continued function was secured through Ohio House Bill 6 passed in July 2019. This law introduced a surcharge on utility bills for Ohio residents to fund $150 million annually in subsidies shared between Perry and the Davis–Besse Nuclear Power Station, thereby guaranteeing ongoing operation. Subsequently, this legislation became a focal point of the Ohio nuclear bribery scandal revealed by the Department of Justice in July 2020.

History

Originally conceived as a two-reactor complex, construction on Unit 2 was halted in 1985 and officially cancelled in 1994. At the time of cancellation, all major structures for Unit 2—including a cooling tower—were completed. Although there remains potential to develop a second unit on the premises, prevailing economic factors, regulatory hurdles, and outstanding taxes associated with "abandon in place" designations significantly reduce this likelihood.

In 1993, the National Institute for Urban Wildlife designated 1,100 acres at Perry as an urban wildlife sanctuary. The area includes various habitats such as wetlands that support endangered species like the spotted turtle. This initiative reflects the plant’s commitment to environmental stewardship consistent with industry standards.

On March 28, 2010, a fire broke out within a lubrication system for a water pump, causing reactor power to decrease to 68%. The fire was extinguished within three hours without interrupting power supply to customers; two firefighters received treatment for heat stress. On February 9, 2016, an unplanned shutdown occurred to perform maintenance on a recirculation pump; full power operations resumed by February 20.

Vistra Corporation currently owns and operates Perry alongside the Davis-Besse and Beaver Valley nuclear facilities. In July 2023, Energy Harbor submitted an application for a twenty-year license renewal for Perry Unit 1. The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission granted official approval of this extension on July 7, 2025, permitting operation through November 7, 2046.

In March 2024, Texas-based Vistra Corporation completed its acquisition of Energy Harbor Corporation along with its nuclear generation assets, thereby strengthening its footprint within the nuclear energy sector.

	Unit 1	Unit 2
Reactor Type	BWR-6
Reactor Manufacturer	General Electric
Turbine Manufacturer	General Electric
Thermal Power	3,758 megawatts	Unit cancelled in 1994
Electrical Output	1,260 megawatts
Transmission System Connection	345,000 volts
Construction Permit Issued	May 3, 1977	May 3, 1977 (construction halted in 1985)
Initial Criticality	June 1986	Unit cancelled in 1994
First Electrical Generation	November 13, 1986
Operational Date	November 18, 1987
Expiration of Original License	March 18, 2026

Electricity production

**Perry Nuclear Power Plant Electricity Generation (**MWh)
Year	Jan	Feb	Mar	Apr	May	Jun	Jul	Aug	Sep	Oct	Nov	Dec	Total Annual Output
2001	822,248	402,972	123,568	798,883	142,023	802,067	324,672	912,057	900,239	930,817	900,034	719,864	7,779,444
2002	918,229	799,411	939,038	900,714	930,813	481,701	909,817	918,977	594,820	745,370	904,754	931,166	9,974,810
2003	930,209	764,817	788,525	82,043
867,503	919,276	678,084	809,632	920,924	856,928	935,145	8,545,176
2004	903,869	876,390	916,173	900,902	624,410	694,868	918,960	919,636	872,942	919,947	899,443	779,786	10,227,326
2005	121,586	549,786
640,649	888,993	912,172	910,533	890,892	912,803	902,642	938,200	7,646,648
2006	904,098	848,230	936,789	880,942	798,087	894,530	906,324	915,903	878,179	918,424	903,221	690,646	10,475,373
2007	925 ,628	841 ,117	906 ,738	8 ,911	294 ,340	684 ,060	168 ,786	931 ,004	898 ,058	929 ,063	837 ,810	632 ,732	8 058 247
2008	951 ,553	891 ,180	886 ,866	598 ,092	940 ,362	880 ,150	921 ,451	928 ,586	890 ,697	950 ,446	914 ,227	936 ,983	10 690 593
2009	944 877	657 957
392 649	676 761	907 675	928 035	904 217	440 263	812 520	948 929	7 596 472
2010	948 792	844 351	929 709	890 359	680 413	827 853	903 208	921 538	899 634	924 231	910 835	938 788	10 619 711
2011	937 494	834 829	876 861	436 568
543 044	918 578	927 009	875 211	373 434	911 926	934 434	8 560 849
2012 941 442 886 315 795 538 373 434 932 521 619 344 914 450 869 909 875 608 926 623 911 517 926 405	9 973 106
2013 721 885 827 548 462 974 -7 203 404 866 620 070 928 048 916 126 777 536 940 124 901 938 947 510	8 441 422
2014 949 623 825 826 906 476 911 860 875 284 898 595 925 829 917 719 873 851 699 994 728 750 941 464	10 455 271
2015 933 301 789 395 200 060 133 474 943 412 902 981 934 710 936 036 892 341 948 465 922 161 946 509	9 482 845
2016 709 583 622 146 946 537 914 375 943 605 814 486 915 017 902 059 850 547 935 958 922 911 946 026	10 423 250
2017 889 629 730 056 81 611 799 786 854 715 900 496 922 662 924 360 901 953 938 167 921 095 947 846	9 812 376
2018 952 931 849 443 951 635 919 725 934 198 890 632 906 864 904 012 882 733 931 505 914 087 896 971	10 934 736
2019 809 277 556 333 177 752 670 859 941 856 841 553 780 669 747 528 859 887 939 869 923 556 923 963	9 173 102
2020 928 860 893 210 932 277 917 959 941 610 891 452 889 355 909 725 892 399 936 477 914 074 943 564	10 990 962
2021 892 962 731 469 134 313 643 595 940 469 886 554 917 399 891 878 897 857 935 011 919 089 913 272	9 703 868
2022 902 658 845 250 920 347 883 206 914 023 866 926 883 939 848 346 822 350 887 197 635 367 924 845	10 334 454
2023 406 723 365 497 -6 309 288 698 938 798 899 050 912 742 718 651 886 140 939 753 920 669 950 500	7 220 712
2024 937 405 890 427 940 755 910 393 609 327 869 592 896 591 899 839 887 950 932 956 908 315 895 313	10 578 863
2025 912 043 755 369 113 480 245 636

Surrounding population

The Nuclear Regulatory Commission identifies two key emergency planning zones around nuclear facilities: a 10-mile radius focused on potential airborne radioactive exposure, and a broader 50-mile area addressing risks related to contaminated food and drink consumption.

As of 2010, the number of residents living within 10 miles of Perry stood at 83,410, reflecting an 8% increase compared to 2000. In the wider 50-mile zone, the population totaled 2,281,531, marking a 3% decline since 2000. Notable urban centers within this distance include Cleveland, situated approximately 36 miles from the plant. Populations from Canada are excluded from these figures.

Seismic risk

According to a 2010 assessment by the NRC, the likelihood of an earthquake causing core damage at Perry is estimated at one in 47,619 annually.

Security threats

On April 7, 2021, the FBI’s Cleveland Field Office responded to a security incident at Perry that necessitated deployment of a bomb squad. A man from Michigan reported a bomb in a trailer he had brought to the site; however, no explosive device was discovered and he was subsequently taken into custody.