Virginia Power is one of the ten biggest electricity utilities in the
United Stares of America. In 1972, the Surry-1 nuclear generating unit
, equipped with an 850 MWe pressurized water reactor from Westinghouse
, was accepted into commercial operation. Unit-2 followed in 1973. The
North Anna plant is equipped with two 950 MWe PWR commissioned in 197
8 and 1980, respectively. The forts units together supply roughly one
third of the electric power of the grid system in Virginia. They conve
rt nuclear energy into electric power in an economic way: capacity uti
lization averaged over five years amounted to 90%, and the generating
costs were 1.2 cents per kilowatthour. In 1996, the operator began to
make rise of the experience accumulated in running his plants when bac
kfitting the three generating units on the Millstone site, which are c
urrently out of operation. An agreement on cooperation to this effect
was signed by the two utilities, Virginia Power and Northeast Nuclear
Energy Company. As a consequence of deregulation of the US electricity
market it may be economically preferable to buy electric power instea
d of generating it in-house.