Energy Northwest and the Bonneville Power Administration are taking a significant step toward strengthening the Pacific Northwest’s supply of affordable, reliable and secure energy. On May 20, BPA approved the implementation of an Extended Power Uprate project that increases the output of Columbia Generating Station. The EPU is an approximately USD 700M project that will increase the station’s electrical output by 162 megawatts.
Columbia Generating Station is a 1,207-megawatt nuclear energy facility near Richland, Washington. The EPU will increase electrical output by upgrading and replacing equipment — including turbines, heat exchangers and the generator — while maintaining high safety standards and improving reliability.
The project will involve approximately 30 individual upgrades, primarily focused on increasing the size of pumps and motors. These enhancements coincide with biennial refuelling outages, creating new job opportunities for skilled workers.
Alongside the EPU, energy efficiency upgrades incorporated during the next three refuelling outages in 2027, 2029 and 2031 are expected to add 24 megawatts of output capacity, bringing the total increase to 186 megawatts. This expanded capacity will be added to BPA’s federal system power, serving consumer-owned utilities across six Northwest states.