Robinson 2 begins Fall 2026 refueling outage

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Robinson 2, Hartsville, South Carolina.

Robinson 2 began a scheduled refueling outage on October 3, 2026, starting six days earlier than its planned October 9 date. The 759-megawatt Westinghouse unit entered the maintenance period following a 1198-day unscheduled-outage-free streak.

Operated by Duke Energy Progress, the plant completed a 20-month operating cycle after achieving a 99.5 percent capacity factor during 2025. The historical unit average for 16 prior refueling outages stands at 45.9 days, with the longest previous refuel reaching 112 days in 2010. Across the broader U.S. fleet, 94 units operated at an 85.2 percent capacity factor, with 12 units currently in refueling outages.

HARTSVILLE, SC. Robinson 2 came offline on Oct 3, 2026 for refueling. The published schedule had a Oct 9, 2026 start; actual is 6 days earlier than planned. Planned outage length is 30 days (back to service around Nov 8, 2026).

Going into the refueling, the unit had run for more than 3 years without an unscheduled outage. NukeWorker's start-date projection scores 100% accuracy for this unit.

Across the U.S. fleet of 94 commercial reactors, today's combined capacity factor is 85.2% (12 units currently refueling, 1 unit in an unscheduled outage), above the 81.8% baseline for this month over the past five years. Palo Verde 1, Prairie Island 1, Sequoyah 2, and Salem 1 also began refueling outages within the past week. With the unit offline for refueling, that takes about 607,000 homes' worth of generation off the grid.

Robinson 2 is a 759-MW Westinghouse 3-loop PWR operated by Duke Energy Progress - (NC) (commercial operation since 1971). The utility operates 3 other U.S. nuclear units. Its operating license runs through 2050 (renewed in 2026). The unit ran at a 99.5% capacity factor in 2025, among the unit's strongest cycles.

Heading to Hartsville, SC for outage work? Current per-diem averages $113/night lodging plus $68/day meals (total $181/day), and Unemployment Benefits are $326 weekly. See open nuclear jobs in South Carolina on NukeWorker.

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Sources: NRC Daily Reactor Power Status reports, utility-published outage schedules, and NukeWorker's projections.