Total U.S. nuclear plant availability ticked slightlylower early Oct. 6 to 83.51%, down from 83.63% on Oct. 5 but still above the82.10% reported on the same day in 2015.

Pulling down total U.S. production was the loss ofAmerican Electric Power Co.Inc.'s Donald C. Cook 2 plant in Michigan. The unit was takenoffline as of early Oct. 6 for what private sources indicate will be arefueling outage. Prior to being idled, the unit was at 49% on Oct. 5.

Working to offset the shutdown was the full return ofNextEra Energy Inc.'sTurkey Point 4 in Florida. The unit was pegged at 100% power early Oct. 6,rising from 48% the day prior.

Looking ahead, private sources indicate that a numberof units may be shut in the following days for refueling outages: 'sPalo Verde 3 in Arizona; DukeEnergy Corp.'s Shearon Harris Nuclear Power Plant in NorthCarolina; and South Texas Project 2 in Texas, which is jointly owned byNRG Energy Inc.,CPS Energy andAustin Energy.

For details of U.S. nuclear power plant operations,visit our NuclearStatus and Output Page.