Point Beach 1 begins Fall 2026 refueling outage

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Point Beach 1, Two Rivers, Wisconsin.

Point Beach 1 began a routine refueling outage on October 10, 2026, starting exactly on its planned date. The 598-MW Westinghouse two-loop pressurized water reactor entered the fall maintenance window after completing about 100 percent of its typical 548-day operating cycle.

Operated by NextEra Energy Point Beach, the unit entered this refuel carrying an unscheduled outage-free streak of 1,896 days and a prior cycle capacity factor of 93.9 percent. The plant has a 36.6-day average across 18 prior refuels, while NukeWorker holds a 92 percent duration-projection accuracy on this unit. Across the wider fleet, 94 units operated at an 81.3 percent capacity factor with 15 units in refueling.

TWO RIVERS, WI. Point Beach 1 came offline on Oct 10, 2026 for refueling. The unit started on the published date (Oct 10, 2026) with a planned 19-day outage running through Oct 29, 2026.

Going into the refueling, the unit had run for more than 5 years without an unscheduled outage. NukeWorker's start-date projection scores 99% accuracy for this unit.

Across the U.S. fleet of 94 commercial reactors, today's combined capacity factor is 81.3% (15 units currently refueling, 2 units in unscheduled outages), below the 81.8% baseline for this month over the past five years. At the same site, Point Beach 2 is running at full power. Diablo Canyon 1, Millstone 3, and Peach Bottom 2 also began refueling outages within the past week. With the unit offline for refueling, that takes about 478,000 homes' worth of generation off the grid.

Point Beach 1 is a 598-MW Westinghouse 2-loop PWR operated by NextEra Energy Point Beach (commercial operation since 1970). The utility operates 1 other U.S. nuclear unit. Its operating license runs through 2050 (renewed in 2025). The unit ran at a 93.9% capacity factor in 2025, a solid year of operation.

Heading to Two Rivers, WI for outage work? Current per-diem averages $113/night lodging plus $68/day meals (total $181/day), and Unemployment Benefits are $370 weekly. See open nuclear jobs in Wisconsin on NukeWorker.

View Point Beach 1's ratings, history, projections, and current status on NukeWorker.

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

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Point Beach 1's reactor is critical: the NRC's Nov 5, 2026 report shows it at 14% power in Mode 1, the first reading above zero since its Fall 2026 refueling outage began on Oct 10, 2026.

NRC daily power since restart: Nov 5 14%

View Point Beach 1's ratings, history, projections, and current status on NukeWorker.

Source: NRC Daily Reactor Power Status reports.

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Point Beach 1 is back on the grid: the NRC's Nov 8, 2026 report shows it at 74% power, more steam than its condenser steam dumps can take, so the main generator is on line. That came 3 days after its first reading above zero on Nov 5, 2026.

NRC daily power since restart: Nov 5 14% · Nov 6 24% · Nov 7 48% · Nov 8 74% · Nov 9 93%

View Point Beach 1's ratings, history, projections, and current status on NukeWorker.

Source: NRC Daily Reactor Power Status reports.

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Point Beach 1 reached full power, 100%, in the NRC's Nov 10, 2026 report, 5 days after its first reading above zero, completing power ascension from its Fall 2026 refueling outage. Over its last 6 refuels the climb from first power to full power took a median of 4 days.

NRC daily power since restart: Nov 5 14% · Nov 6 24% · Nov 7 48% · Nov 8 74% · Nov 9 93% · Nov 10 100%

The outage in full: Point Beach 1 completes Fall refuel in 26 days, caps 548-day B2B run.

View Point Beach 1's ratings, history, projections, and current status on NukeWorker.

Source: NRC Daily Reactor Power Status reports.