Overview

The Humboldt Bay Power Plant (HBPP) site hosts PG&E’s Humboldt Bay Generation Station (HBGS), which supplies power to approximately 67,000 customers primarily within Humboldt County. HBPP is currently decommissioned.

HBPP is located just south of Eureka near the mouth of Humboldt Bay in Humboldt County, California.

Pre-decommissioning, 2008

Pre-decommissioning, 2008

Post-decommissioning-2020

Post-decommissioning, 2020

Background


At Humboldt Bay Power Plant (HBPP), there were two fossil powered units, 1 and 2, that supplied power to the growing community of Eureka, CA. The two fossil units were commissioned in the mid-1950s and ran for just over 50 years before they were decommissioned. Unit 3 was commissioned in 1963 and operated as a 65-megawatt (MW), natural-circulation boiling-water reactor.


Unit 3 was shut down in 1976 for refueling and seismic upgrades. Repairs subsequently extended the planned shutdown period, and in that interval, significant regulatory changes were made for reactor operation and design. The decision was made to forego further modifications and to not restart Unit 3.


In 1983, PG&E announced its intention to decommission Unit 3. In 1986, PG&E requested a Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) license amendment for SAFSTOR, a condition that would permit Unit 3 to store nuclear fuel, but not to operate. The SAFSTOR license was received in 1988.

Decommissioning

Decommissioning started in 2009 and completed in 2021. The former reactor vessel, nuclear systems, caisson (containment) structure, buildings and other materials have been removed. The soil at the HBPP site now meets Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) standards for the “residential farmer” scenario. It is the strictest guideline for decommissioning former nuclear power plants.

Next Steps

PG&E does not currently have plans beyond industrial use for the site as the Humboldt Bay Independent Spent Fuel Storage Installation (HB ISFSI) and the Humboldt Bay Generating Station (HBGS) are located within the former HBPP site boundary.