Power Reactor Demonstration Program

The Power Reactor Demonstration Program (PRDP)^a was an initiative of the United States Atomic Energy Commission to fund the research and development of nuclear power in the United States.³ Review and funding of projects took place between 1955 and 1963⁴ over three distinct rounds.¹³

The program co-funded the following facilities:

Round	Facility name	Type	Capacity (MWe)	State	Commissioned
1	Yankee Rowe	PWR	180	Massachusetts	1961
	Dresden 1	BWR	197	Illinois	1960
	Hallam	SGR	75	Nebraska	1963
	Fermi 1	SFR	150	Michigan	1966
2	Piqua	OCR	45	Ohio	1963
	Elk River	BWR	22	Minnesota	1964
	La Crosse	BWR	50	Wisconsin	1969
3	Carolinas-Virginia Tube Reactor	PHWR	17	South Carolina	1963
	Big Rock Point	BWR	67	Michigan	1963
	Pathfinder	BWR	59	South Dakota	1966
	Peach Bottom	HTGR	40	Pennsylvania	1966
	San Onofre	PWR	436	California	1968
	Connecticut Yankee	PWR	560	Connecticut	1968

Notes

Sometimes referred to as the Power Demonstration Reactor Program (PDRP)¹ or as the Cooperative Power Reactor Demonstration Program.²

References

Gillespie, Christopher W.; Johnson, Robert A.; Martinez, Marty; Taylor, Emmanuel (2016-04-29). Innovation Pathway Study: U.S. Commercial Nuclear Power (PDF) (Report). Energetics Incorporated. Task Order No. DE-BP0004706. Retrieved 2026-02-25.
Program on Technology Innovation: Government and Industry Roles in the Research, Development, Demonstration, and Deployment of Commercial Nuclear Reactors (Technical report). Electric Power Research Institute. 2017-12-11. Retrieved 2026-03-12.
Allen, Wendy (1977). "Nuclear Reactors for Generating Electricity". RAND Corporation.
Mazuzan, George T. (1982). "Atomic Power Safety: The Case of the Power Reactor Development Company Fast Breeder, 1955-1956" (PDF). Technology and Culture. 23. Johns Hopkins University Press: 341–371. JSTOR 3104483. Retrieved 2026-03-13.

[3] Sometimes referred to as the Power Demonstration Reactor Program (PDRP)¹ or as the Cooperative Power Reactor Demonstration Program.²

[IPS-1] Gillespie, Christopher W.; Johnson, Robert A.; Martinez, Marty; Taylor, Emmanuel (2016-04-29). Innovation Pathway Study: U.S. Commercial Nuclear Power (PDF) (Report). Energetics Incorporated. Task Order No. DE-BP0004706. Retrieved 2026-02-25.

[EPRI2017-2] Program on Technology Innovation: Government and Industry Roles in the Research, Development, Demonstration, and Deployment of Commercial Nuclear Reactors (Technical report). Electric Power Research Institute. 2017-12-11. Retrieved 2026-03-12.

[RAND-4] Allen, Wendy (1977). "Nuclear Reactors for Generating Electricity". RAND Corporation.

[AtomicPowerSafety-5] Mazuzan, George T. (1982). "Atomic Power Safety: The Case of the Power Reactor Development Company Fast Breeder, 1955-1956" (PDF). Technology and Culture. 23. Johns Hopkins University Press: 341–371. JSTOR 3104483. Retrieved 2026-03-13.

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