PSEG plans a 200-MW uprate at Salem as a refueling outage extends
From the Energy digest for Nov 5, 2026
What happened: PSEG executives said on the utility's November 2 third-quarter earnings call that the two-unit Salem nuclear plant in Hancocks Bridge, New Jersey is expected to get a 200-MW uprate, with PSEG Nuclear — which owns 57 percent of the plant — receiving roughly 112 MW; Constellation owns the other 43 percent. PSEG has also notified the Nuclear Regulatory Commission of its intent to file 20-year operating license extensions for both Salem and Hope Creek, which together produce more than 40 percent of New Jersey's electricity.
What's genuinely new: The size of the uprate, disclosed in PSEG's quarterly presentation after Constellation's October announcement that 11 facilities including Salem are in line for capacity upgrades. The same filing revealed that a visual inspection during Salem-1's October refueling outage showed degradation of the thermal shield inside the reactor vessel; PSEG has begun further testing and expects to extend the outage, with the impact depending on timing, inspection results and any repair work. CEO Ralph LaRossa also said PSEG took part in the first meeting of Governor Mikie Sherrill's Nuclear Task Force on a new state nuclear strategy, noting the site is one of six in the country with an NRC early site permit.
Watch: Salem-1's extended-outage outcome, the 20-year license-extension filings, execution of the uprate, and the state nuclear strategy it feeds.
Links: American Nuclear Society · Nov 5, 4:32 PM ET