Disastrous derecho closes Iowa’s only nuke early, wind energy surpasses coal to become the state's single largest electricity provider

The single unit Duane Arnold nuclear power station, just eight miles northwest of Cedar Rapids, Iowa will not restart following an emergency shutdown on August 10, 2020.  The massive derecho storm that swept across much of the nation’s Midwest with sustained winds in excess of 120 miles per hour knocked down the electrical power grid, including to the atomic power reactor. During power operations, nuclear power station safety systems receive 100% of their power from the offsite electric grid. NextEra Energy had already decided in 2018 to permanently close the uneconomical nuclear power station by October 2020 but onsite wind damage prompted the company to permanently shutter the facility early. Duane Arnold had received its license extension from the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission in 2010 to operate until 2034 but demonstrated that it could not compete with more economical and reliable wind power generation.  

Duane Arnold had been operating at reduced power since July 9, 2020 because of leaky nuclear fuel in its reactor core. When the hurricane force wind knocked down the grid, the Fukushima-style reactor experienced an automatic SCRAM and the on-site emergency diesel generators turned on to maintain essential safety systems like the reactor cooling pumps to prevent a catastrophic melt down.

According to a report by the American Wind Energy Association, the Des Moines Register reports, wind energy is Iowa’s largest single source of electricity generation at more than 10,000 megawatts (40%) and growing. Wind power now surpasses coal burning electricity generators in Iowa.