Browns Ferry nuclear power plant 3
Gross capacity
1,260MW
Browns Ferry nuclear power plant 3 is a boiling water reactor unit at Browns Ferry nuclear power plant in United States rated at 1,260 MW gross. It is operating. Commercial operation began 1 Mar 1977.
Specification
| Reactor type | Boiling water reactor (BWR) |
|---|---|
| Model | BWR-4 (Mark 1) |
| Size class | Large |
| Coolant | Light water |
| Moderator | Light water |
| Gross capacity | 1,260MW |
| Net capacity (reference) | 1,210MW |
| Net capacity (design) | 1,065MW |
| Thermal output | 3,458MWt |
| Typical enrichment | 3–5% U-235 |
Ownership & location
| Site | Browns Ferry nuclear power plant |
|---|---|
| Unit | 3 |
| Country | United States |
| Owner | Tennessee Valley Authority100% |
| Operator | Tennessee Valley Authority |
| Coordinates | 34.7042, -87.1189 |
Fuel chain for this unit
Fuel form
Uranium dioxide pellets in zirconium-alloy cladding
Enrichment
3–5% U-235
Who makes this assembly
- Framatome BWR fuel assemblies
- Global Nuclear Fuel BWR fuel assemblies
- Westinghouse Electric Company BWR fuel assemblies
Upstream
Enriched fuel means this unit sits downstream of five conversion plants and four enrichment operators holding 88% of world capacity between the top three.
Fabricator capability is recorded against reactor type and model line, not against named units —
utilities do not publish fuel contracts. See the fuel chain.
Timeline
- 1 Jul 1968Construction start
- 8 Aug 1976First criticality
- 12 Sep 1976Grid connection
- 1 Mar 1977Commercial operation
Other units at Browns Ferry nuclear power plant
| Unit | Status | Gross MW |
|---|---|---|
| Browns Ferry nuclear power plant 1 | 1,256 | |
| Browns Ferry nuclear power plant 2 | 1,259 |
Other BWR-4 (Mark 1) units
18 units worldwide share this model designation.
| Unit | Country | Status | Gross MW |
|---|---|---|---|
| Browns Ferry nuclear power plant 1 | United States | 1,256 | |
| Browns Ferry nuclear power plant 2 | United States | 1,259 | |
| Brunswick nuclear power plant 1 | United States | 990 | |
| Brunswick nuclear power plant 2 | United States | 960 | |
| Cooper nuclear power plant | United States | 801 | |
| Edwin I Hatch nuclear power plant 1 | United States | 911 | |
| Edwin I Hatch nuclear power plant 2 | United States | 921 | |
| Fermi nuclear power plant 2 | United States | 1,198 | |
| Hope Creek nuclear power plant 1 | United States | 1,240 | |
| James A Fitzpatrick nuclear power plant | United States | 849 | |
| Peach Bottom nuclear power plant 2 | United States | 1,412 | |
| Peach Bottom nuclear power plant 3 | United States | 1,412 |
Sources
- Global Nuclear Power Tracker, Global Energy Monitor, August 2026 release — CC BY 4.0 · retrieved 2026-09-06 · this unit last researched by GEM on 2024-05-24
- GEM.wiki entry (further reading) — CC BY-SA 4.0 — linked, not quoted