Holtec Completes Refurbishments at Palisades Nuclear Plant

Holtec International announced last week that major refurbishment projects at the Palisades nuclear plant are complete, @zerohedge reported. Reactor vessel inspections, head penetration replacements, steam generator tube refurbishment, primary system decontamination, and operator training finished. New fuel sits on site ready for loading.

The company described the milestone as a watershed moment and shifted attention to remaining tasks. Holtec had stated in 2025 through International Director of Government Affairs and Communications Patrick O’Brien that operations would restart in October 2025. That date has passed.

Earlier this year Holtec said the plant would restart when ready for long-term operations. CEO Kris Singh told the Financial Times he expects a restart this year ahead of a March 2027 power supply contract. The $1.5 billion DOE loan closed in 2024 with initial expectations for a late 2025 restart.

More than 5,000 individual work activities remain on the restart checklist. Most involve routine maintenance, testing, inspection, and operational readiness. A federal court dismissed a lawsuit by environmental groups that challenged the NRC exemption allowing a decommissioned plant to restart.

Holtec is preparing an IPO pegged at a roughly $10 billion valuation. Palisades represents the first major DOE loan guarantee project for a nuclear plant restart.