One example of engaged employees is Kyle Lanoue, a mechanical maintenance repairman at River Bend Station in St. Francisville, La. Lanoue recently contributed an idea during a brainstorming session to utilize a tool from the����—a 3D integral viewer of the station’s Terry turbine,��a vital component used to drive pumps that deliver coolant to the steam generators. This innovative resource will enhance our just-in-time training and will be a vital tool during periodic refueling outages.��

The 3D viewer provides a detailed visual representation of how the turbine disassembles, breaking down each step so that team members can understand their upcoming tasks. This tool is particularly beneficial during the maintenance walk-down process, as it enables users to roll over actual bolts to check stud lengths and sizes, ensuring all work is performed accurately and efficiently.��

“It gives you a full idea of what you plan to see before getting into the work activity in the field. This helps us perform the work activity safely and efficiently,” Lanoue said. “You can come in here, look through the work steps and say, ‘I want to accomplish this when I go out there.’”��

“This is a testament to what can happen when we listen to our workforce and support them by putting into action what would help them do their jobs better, more safely and more reliably while adhering to our schedules,” said��Phil Hansett, River Bend Station site vice president.��

#MeetThePros��

Mullen was recently promoted to her new supervisor role from her previous role in training at the site.

Mullen and her team work to oversee the day-to-day operations of radiation protection as well as any emergent issues.

“As a new leader, I am excited to get to know everyone on my team personally,” said Mullen. “Understanding everyone’s strengths and weaknesses will make us a stronger team.”

The teamwork present at Grand Gulf is Mullen’s favorite aspect of working at the site.

“I love how everyone has embraced cross-functional teamwork,” Mullen said. “Everyone works so well together, and it is good to see everyone reaching beyond department lines to achieve a common goal.”

For more information about Entergy Nuclear, visit entergynuclear.com or follow����on X/Twitter.

#MeetThePros

Dyer and Fitzgerald both work to keep the plants safe with their security teams.

Fitzgerald works to recruit security officers through career fairs and helps manage the budget and paperwork with the security team at Grand Gulf. She is also a big advocate for boosting the morale of security officers.

“I encourage the security department to get involved as much as possible with community service, I started doing employee of the month recognition and I celebrate the officers’ work anniversaries,” said Fitzgerald.

Dyer’s strong focus on career development has led to working toward her goal of becoming an access authorization fitness for duty collector. This role at the plant handles the authorizations during refueling outages for third-party contractors to enter the plant safely. As a learning opportunity, she is supporting access authorization at Waterford 3 Steam Electric Station during their current refueling outage.

When plant operators take the unit offline for a scheduled refueling outage, nuclear professionals remove a portion of the fuel from the reactor, organize current fuel rods and replace the old fuel with new fuel.

During the refueling, the team along with contract workers will also complete maintenance work and other projects to improve plant reliability. Every detail of a refueling outage is meticulously planned, including the contract workers who must have proper documented authorization access to the plant.

Both security team members have a strong emphasis on safety in their roles.

“Safety is paramount at River Bend,” said Dyer. “I focus on safety by keeping my eyes on my path while walking on patrols and traversing throughout the plant. Walking is working, meaning that I must focus on doing it safely.”

As a security officer,��Dyer��also expresses the importance of using handrails and staying hydrated while on duty.

Likewise, safety is the number one priority for Fitzgerald, too.

Both women emphasize making safety personal through being mothers and ensuring they return home healthy for their children. Dyer has one 20-year-old son and Fitzgerald has three children, ages 11-, 15- and 19-years old.

Fitzgerald’s favorite part of working at Grand Gulf is its employees emphasis on community service.

“I love that I get to work with a group of people so passionate about giving back to the community,” Fitzgerald said. “Entergy as a company does so much for their local communities. It warms my heart to know my teammates are so willing to jump up and lend a helping hand to those in need.”

For inquiries and postings about security positions available at Entergy Nuclear, please visit .

#MeetThePros

RUSSELVILLE, Ark.¬†– Control room operators removed Arkansas Nuclear One’s Unit 2 from service April 15 to begin a scheduled refueling and maintenance outage. This ended a 501 consecutive day run for ANO 2 of safe, secure and reliable operation, the second longest continuous run in the unit’s history. During the outage, station and supplemental workers will perform maintenance and testing activities to prepare the station for its next operating cycle.

“ANO is proud to be conducting this essential work, which will include both refueling and regular maintenance that will allow us to remain a safe and reliable source of clean energy for the River Valley and the state of Arkansas” said Joe Sullivan, Arkansas Nuclear One site vice president. “We are welcoming a host of contract workers who will help us throughout the outage, and we expect their partnership to create an economic boost to our community as well.”

More than 1,100 contract workers, many from outside of the area, will help with the refueling outage, bringing economic opportunities for dozens of vendors and local businesses, including restaurants, hotels and stores.

Work will be completed by full-time ANO employees and supported by Entergy employees from its other nuclear plants and contract workers, including pipefitters, millwrights, ironworkers, carpenters, boilermakers, electricians, laborers, valve technicians, engineers, operating engineers and radiation protection technicians.

ANO is a dual unit site, housing two nuclear reactors. Unit 1 will continue operating during the Unit 2 refuel.

When plant operators take the unit offline, nuclear professionals remove a portion of the fuel from the reactor, organize current fuel rods and replace the old fuel with new fuel.

During the refueling, the team will also complete maintenance work and other projects to improve reliability. Every detail of a refueling outage is meticulously planned and every ANO worker plays an important role.

ANO is licensed to operate through 2034 and 2038, respectively. As a clean, carbon-free energy source, ANO is an important contributor to helping Entergy meet its commitment to achieve net-zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2050. Entergy Nuclear, which operates nuclear generating stations in Arkansas, Louisiana and Mississippi, is headquartered in Jackson, Mississippi.

About Entergy

Entergy Nuclear, headquartered in Jackson, Mississippi, is a subsidiary of ���ϳԹ���. Entergy Nuclear owns, operates and supports a fleet of five reactors in four locations, generating enough clean, carbon-free electricity to power millions of homes. Entergy (NYSE: ETR) is a Fortune 500 company that powers life for 3 million customers through our operating companies in Arkansas, Louisiana, Mississippi and Texas. We’re investing in the reliability and resilience of the energy system while helping our region transition to cleaner, more efficient energy solutions. With roots in our communities for more than 100 years, Entergy is a nationally recognized leader in sustainability and corporate citizenship. Since 2018, we have delivered more than $100 million in economic benefits each year to local communities through philanthropy, volunteerism and advocacy. Entergy is headquartered in New Orleans, Louisiana, and has approximately 12,000 employees. Learn more at¬†entergy.com¬†and follow¬†@Entergy¬†on social media. #WePowerLife

“During this outage, we’re performing our condenser retube project,” said Knighten. “I was here when they brought the condenser and current tubes off the Mississippi River. I helped build this plant and now I maintain it.”

Nuclear power plants schedule refueling and maintenance outages every 18 to 24 months to refuel the site, just like refueling a car. While the unit is offline, the team completes maintenance work and other projects to improve reliability. Every detail of a refueling outage is meticulously planned and everyone plays a role. Major projects are planned years in advance, with all the work reviewed and approved long before the outage begins.

Knighten��began working at��River Bend in 1980 during the construction phase as a contractor for Stone & Webster. When the plant began operation in 1986,��Knighten��stayed as a maintenance worker. In 1989, he was hired by Gulf States Utility, which eventually became Entergy Nuclear.

“I was working on a job at the bottom of the control building when the superintendent for mechanical maintenance asked me if I was interested in joining the company,” Knighten said. “I immediately said yes.”

Knighten, being well-versed in the nuclear industry, has advice for newcomers or people who may be interested in nuclear.

“If you’re coming into the nuclear business, I always tell people to be sure this is something you want to do,” Knighten said. “We work in an extremely unique industry, and it takes the best of the best to ensure we are performing work safely to protect the health and safety of the public. We must take every step to ensure we perform our work safely and correctly every time.”

Knighten��plays an integral role at River Bend Station, and the station is lucky to have him for another refuel outage.

“To be a nuclear professional, you must want to be here,” said Knighten. “This job has been great to me, and I’m proud to be a nuclear professional at River Bend Station.”

Thank you, “Big C,” for all the years of hard work and safety you have invested with Entergy Nuclear.

#MeetThePros

ST. FRANCISVILLE, La. – Control room operators removed Entergy’s River Bend Station from service on Feb. 11 to begin its 22^nd scheduled refueling and maintenance outage. Entergy is making a multi-million-dollar investment in River Bend to complete the refueling and other important projects. That investment translates to additional economic activity for dozens of vendors and more than 1,900 contract workers, many from outside the area.

“Our scheduled refueling outage is essential to ensure River Bend continues operating safely and reliably,” said Bruce Chenard, River Bend’s general manager of plant operations. “It supports our role in producing clean, carbon-free nuclear energy for our stakeholders—our customers, communities, employees and owners.”

Work will be completed by more than 650 full-time River Bend employees and supported by Entergy employees from its other nuclear plants and contract workers, including pipefitters, millwrights, ironworkers, carpenters, boilermakers, electricians, laborers, valve technicians, engineers, operating engineers and radiation protection technicians.

The influx of contract workers and their associated spending will boost the local communities economically.

“The surrounding parishes have always supported the station during our refueling outages,” said Chenard. “We appreciate the community’s support during this time of increased activity at our site and outside in the local businesses and community.”

River Bend Station achieved commercial operation in 1986 and is licensed to operate through mid-2045. As a clean, carbon-free energy source, River Bend is an important contributor to helping Entergy meet its commitment to achieve net-zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2050.

About Entergy

Entergy (NYSE: ETR), a Fortune 500 company headquartered in New Orleans, powers life for 3 million customers through its operating companies across Arkansas, Louisiana, Mississippi and Texas. Entergy is creating a cleaner, more resilient energy future for everyone with our diverse power generation portfolio, including increasingly carbon-free energy sources. With roots in the Gulf South region for more than a century, Entergy is a recognized leader in corporate citizenship, delivering more than $100 million in economic benefits to local communities through philanthropy and advocacy efforts annually over the last several years. Our approximately 12,000 employees are dedicated to powering life today and for future generations. Learn more at entergy.com and follow @Entergy on social media. #WePowerLife

PORT GIBSON, Mississippi – Grand Gulf team members joined with hundreds of employees and contracting partners this weekend to commence the station’s 23^rd scheduled refueling and maintenance outage following a record-setting year of power generation.

Control room operators removed the plant from the grid at 9 p.m. Saturday, Feb. 26, placing the plant in safe shutdown while refueling takes place. Refueling outages typically last several weeks, allowing for safe, secure and reliable operation when the refuel and other maintenance activities are finished.

Hundreds of contract workers are joining the Grand Gulf team, along with Entergy employees from other nuclear plants and headquarters. The influx of contract workers throughout the duration of the outage, many from outside the area, and their associated spending will provide an economic boost to the local communities.

Grand Gulf is one of the largest operators of its kind in the world, and the plant enters its 2022 refuel after setting all-time station records for both gross generation and net generation in megawatt-hours. In 2021, Grand Gulf’s net generation was 11,731,254 megawatt-hours, with gross generation of 12,200,125 megawatt-hours. Gross generation is total generation, and net is the amount of total generation produced minus the electricity used to operate the power plant. Previously, Grand Gulf’s all-time record was in 2015, with 11,715,621 and 12,160,896 megawatt-hours, respectively.

Nuclear power plants around the world schedule refuels every 18 to 24 months, typically in the spring or fall when power demands are lower.

What is a refuel?

Nuclear refuels are similar to fueling a vehicle, beginning when plant operators take the unit offline. Then work begins. Nuclear professionals remove a portion of the fuel from the reactor, shuffle current fuel rods and replace the removed fuel with new fuel.

While the unit is offline, the team completes maintenance work and other projects to improve reliability. Every detail of a refueling outage is meticulously planned and every Grand Gulf worker plays an important role.

To ensure the safety of Grand Gulf employees and supplemental workers, COVID-19 prevention protocols will be enforced. Those protocols include mask-wearing when appropriate, social distancing, frequent cleaning and disinfecting, as well as having employees stay home if they feel sick.

With its 800-plus employee workforce, Grand Gulf has a robust impact through community engagement, such as its home winterization drive, park cleanup and other volunteer efforts that help improve local lives while teambuilding for the plant.

Grand Gulf, owned by Entergy (90 percent) and Cooperative ���ϳԹ��� (10 percent), is known worldwide for its generation capabilities. Since 1985, the plant has provided an economic boost to the community while providing low-cost power to Entergy’s customers. Additionally, Grand Gulf and its employees maintain a strong presence in the communities they serve by spending more than $9 million per year with local companies, and through charitable contributions and donations that promote community development, education and the environment.

About Entergy

Entergy, a Fortune 500 company headquartered in New Orleans, powers life for 3 million customers across Arkansas, Louisiana, Mississippi and Texas. Entergy is creating a cleaner, more resilient energy future for everyone with our diverse power generation portfolio, including increasingly carbon-free energy sources. With roots in the Gulf South region for more than a century, Entergy is a recognized leader in corporate citizenship, delivering more than $100 million in economic benefits to local communities through philanthropy and advocacy efforts annually over the last several years. Our approximately 12,500 employees are dedicated to powering life today and for future generations. Learn more at entergy.com, follow @Entergy on social media and on Twitter. #WePowerLife

“I am proud of the site’s performance during our 21^st refueling outage,” said Steve Bibb, River Bend outage manager. “The team executed our plan successfully, allowing us to operate another cycle and provide safe, clean and reliable power to our customers.”

River Bend, located in St. Francisville, La., is a boiling water reactor with General Electric turbines and mechanical draft cooling towers with make-up water from the Mississippi River. The station began commercial operation June 16, 1986, and celebrated 34 years of safe and reliable operations in June 2020. At 974 megawatts, River Bend produces approximately 10% of the total energy demand of Louisiana. The station boasts a team of more than 870 highly trained and dedicated nuclear professionals, committed to their plant and community.

What is a refueling outage?

Just like fueling up a vehicle, nuclear plants require refueling approximately every 18 to 24 months. Refueling outages are typically scheduled in the fall or spring when power demand is lower.

Refueling outages begin when plant operators take the unit offline, and the work begins. The team replaces a third of the fuel in the reactor, shuffles current fuel rods and replaces the removed fuel with new fuel. The new fuel will operate in the reactor for three cycles. A cycle refers to the time between outages. The used fuel that is removed is considered spent fuel and moved to the spent fuel pool where it is stored and then is moved to a concrete dry storage cask.

While the unit is offline, the team completes maintenance work and other projects to improve reliability. Every detail of a refueling outage is meticulously planned and everyone plays a role. Major projects are planned years in advance, with all the work reviewed and approved long before the outage begins.

Supplemental personnel are brought in through contracting companies to complete specialty work and assist in the workload that an outage requires.

Just like regular maintenance on a vehicle, refueling outages ensure the plant runs safely and reliably, so we can continue powering life for Entergy customers.

Entergy Nuclear owns, operates, supports and provides management services to a national fleet of eight reactors in seven locations, generating approximately 8,000 megawatts of zero-carbon nuclear power. With approximately 6,000 nuclear employees in multiple states, Entergy is also recognized globally as a provider of nuclear services to companies in the U.S. and worldwide.

Amid a pandemic, Entergy takes seriously the health and safety of our workforce, customers, and communities. The refueling outage, coupled with the pandemic, allowed us to establish some strong partnerships with local businesses outside our normal refueling partnerships.

As part of our preventive measures to protect our workforce, Entergy provided services for the out-of-town employees, including lodging at local hotels, daily meals and laundry services. This practice allows for the individuals traveling to support River Bend’s outage to limit their potential exposure to COVID-19 by limiting their need to leave the hotel.

Aligned with industry best practices, River Bend booked rooms at 10 local hotels for workers traveling to support the outage, including Courtyard Marriott, Hampton Inn, Hilton Capitol Center, Baton Rouge Marriott, Embassy Suites, Crowne Plaza, Best Western Zachary, Holiday Inn Zachary, Comfort Inn Zachary, and Best Western New Roads. ��

“The outage brought numbers that we, of course, were not seeing,” said Allison Crump, area director of sales for the Courtyard Marriott in Downtown Baton Rouge. “We are currently housing 95 to 100 guestrooms with Entergy. We’ve run pretty full since mid-January.”

Crump explained that most of the hotel staff were furloughed. Yet, with the increase of occupancy from River Bend’s outage, Crump said the hotel employees, including front desk workers and housekeepers, are seeing almost a full week’s schedule.

To further protect our workforce, Entergy hired Culinary Productions to provide daily meals for workers temporarily placed in Baton Rouge for River Bend’s refueling outage.

“We are a high-end catering company, we specialize in large parties,” said Jennifer Wells, owner of Culinary Productions. For her local, family-owned business, losing the business from corporate receptions, meetings and weddings was “absolutely catastrophic.”��

Wells’ company is tasked with providing three meals a day for contract workers at River Bend. Each worker receives an individually packaged breakfast, lunch, dinner and snacks, all handled using COVID-19 packaging requirements. Wells’ husband and co-owner of Culinary Productions, Chef William T. Wells, leads the process of preparing and distributing the meals daily.

Wells said the company’s auxiliary vendors are also seeing an economic impact from River Bend’s outage that they were not seeing during the pandemic, notably the catering suppliers and printers who work for commission.

“We have a full-time workforce right now that is larger than what we normally need to operate,” said Wells. “If it was not for this contract with Entergy’s River Bend Station, I honestly don’t know if we would be open today.”

In addition to services provided to limit potential exposure for traveling workers, COVID-19 prevention protocols are enforced at the station, including daily wellness checks, temperature monitoring, social distancing, mandatory mask usage, and frequent cleaning and disinfecting of workspaces.

“We are grateful for the support of our local businesses,” said Steve Vercelli, Entergy River Bend’s vice president. “With their help, we are able to execute this outage safely and continue powering life for our customers and surrounding community.”

During a refueling outage, the plant team replaces a third of the fuel in the reactor to operate an additional three cycles. While River Bend is offline, the team also performs maintenance work and updates to ensure safe, secure and reliable operation.

Entergy Nuclear owns, operates, supports and provides management services to a national fleet of eight reactors in seven locations. With approximately 6,000 nuclear employees, Entergy also is recognized globally as a provider of nuclear services to companies in the U.S. and worldwide.��

Entergy’s River Bend Station in St. Francisville, Louisiana

Grand Gulf first synchronized to the grid Saturday, May 23, officially ending an extensive refuel and maintenance outage that included a complete modernization of the plant’s turbine control system.

On May 25, the plant came back offline as staff continued work on the new system. Grand Gulf returned to the grid June 2.

The turbine control system update was a major undertaking that positions the plant for years of reliable, efficient service.

Today, Grand Gulf is the most affordable source of clean, carbon-free electricity in Mississippi.

Nuclear power plants must refuel every 18 to 24 months, coming offline while new fuel is added and existing fuel is reconfigured for maximum efficiency. At the same time, workers conduct maintenance upgrades, reliability enhancements and system evaluations that can only be done when the unit is off the grid.

During the outage, technicians used state-of-the-art technology to upgrade plant equipment that will keep the facility generating clean, carbon-free electricity. This year’s outage included a significant amount of major reliability upgrades, including a complete modernization of the plant’s 35-year-old electro-hydraulic turbine control system with the latest technology.

“I am extremely pleased with the nuclear professionalism and teamwork of the Grand Gulf Nuclear Station employees, those supporting from the fleet and our dedicated contracting partners during the refueling and maintenance outage,” said Chris Bakken, Entergy chief nuclear officer. “The team did a phenomenal job of safely refueling the unit, completing important upgrades and maintenance, and returning it to service under extraordinary circumstances of the global pandemic. Our key stakeholders depend on us to keep the clean electricity flowing, and Grand Gulf is a critical part of this country’s infrastructure.

��“Imagine if hospitals, nursing homes, police and fire departments, and grocery stores did not have electricity,” added Bakken “Imagine if students could not complete their school work online, our phones and computers were drained, and our refrigerators and freezers were off. The situation we are currently facing as a country would be even more dire. I am proud of everyone associated with Grand Gulf and our fleet.”

Eric Larson, Grand Gulf site vice president, thanked Grand Gulf team members for their focus and dedication during the outage.

“Outages are always complicated and challenging with thousands of tasks and projects, but we were especially challenged with bringing more than 1,500 additional contractors on-site during the COVID-19 global pandemic,” he said. “However, our team responded. Our company has invested millions of dollars in Grand Gulf. The investments and upgrades – with our excellent team – will help ensure the plant continues to provide clean, carbon-free power and be a positive force in our local community.”

Entergy is Committed to Grand Gulf and Our Stakeholders��

In July 1985, Grand Gulf Nuclear Station in Port Gibson made history by becoming the first nuclear power plant to produce electricity in Mississippi. Grand Gulf marked another milestone by completing a power upgrade June 16, 2012, making it the largest single-unit nuclear power plant in the country and fifth-largest in the world. The project was one of the largest expansions of a nuclear power plant in U.S. history and increased Grand Gulf’s production by more than 13 percent. The action was part of Entergy’s overall plan to close a growing gap between the amount of power the company produces and the amount that customers use.

In 2016, Entergy further showed the company’s commitment to Grand Gulf when receiving a 20-year license extension by the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, allowing Entergy the option to operate the plant through 2044.