{"id":2724,"date":"2026-08-23T20:02:53","date_gmt":"2026-08-23T18:02:53","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/energianucleare.eu\/diablo-canyon-to-stay-open-until-2045-california-reverses-course-on-nuclear-energy\/"},"modified":"2026-08-23T20:02:53","modified_gmt":"2026-08-23T18:02:53","slug":"diablo-canyon-to-stay-open-until-2045-california-reverses-course-on-nuclear-energy","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/energianucleare.eu\/en\/diablo-canyon-to-stay-open-until-2045-california-reverses-course-on-nuclear-energy\/","title":{"rendered":"Diablo Canyon to stay open until 2045: California reverses course on nuclear energy"},"content":{"rendered":"

The Nuclear Regulatory Commission<\/strong> approved on April 3, 2026, a 20-year operating license renewal for Diablo Canyon<\/strong>, California’s only active nuclear power plant. Unit 1 will be authorized to operate until November 2044, and Unit 2 until August 2045. For a state that had planned to close the facility by 2025, this represents a fundamental shift in direction.<\/p>\n

Diablo Canyon’s recent history has been marked by a series of policy reversals. In 2016, Pacific Gas & Electric<\/strong> announced it would shut down the plant by 2025. Then in 2022, Governor Gavin Newsom \u2014 who had previously backed the retirement \u2014 championed Senate Bill 846, pushing the closure date to 2030 and authorizing a state loan of up to $1.4 billion to support the plant’s continued operation. PG&E subsequently submitted its license renewal application to the NRC in November 2023, kicking off a process that took roughly two and a half years. On February 26, 2026, the Central Coast Regional Water Quality Control Board issued the final required state permits, clearing the way for federal action.<\/p>\n

The numbers go a long way toward explaining California’s change of heart. Diablo Canyon<\/strong> supplies roughly 8.5% of the state’s total electricity and nearly 20% of its available clean energy, serving around 4 million residents. It is California’s single largest source of carbon-free power. Shutting it down would have meant either filling that gap with natural gas or pushing a renewable energy transition that the grid is not yet equipped to handle during peak demand. The threat of blackouts \u2014 already experienced in recent years \u2014 weighed heavily in the political calculus.<\/p>\n

The federal green light, however, is only part of the equation. A 2022 state law requires that any extension beyond 2030 receive explicit approval from the California Legislature. The NRC has opened the door, but it is up to Sacramento’s lawmakers to decide whether to walk through it. By August 2026, dozens of elected representatives had already formally urged Governor Newsom and the state assembly to act before the end of the year. In the meantime, the federal Department of Energy disbursed a $271 million<\/strong> payment to PG&E under the Civil Nuclear Credit Program, a fund established in 2022 to support existing nuclear plants at risk of premature closure.<\/p>\n

The California case sits within a broader context. After years in which nuclear power was widely regarded as a technology on its way out, several Western governments are reassessing the role of existing plants as a stable, zero-emission energy source. California \u2014 traditionally among the most skeptical \u2014 is signaling with this decision that even the most entrenched positions can shift when the realities of grid management demand concrete choices. Should the state legislature approve the extension beyond 2030, Diablo Canyon will become a textbook case in how to manage the long-term operation of a nuclear facility within a transitioning energy system \u2014 with all the implications that entails for maintenance, investment, and public acceptance.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The Nuclear Regulatory Commission has approved a 20-year license renewal for Diablo Canyon, California’s last remaining nuclear power plant, allowing it to operate through 2044\u20132045. This marks a dramatic policy shift for a state that had originally planned to shut the facility down by 2025.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":25,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2724","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\nDiablo Canyon to stay open until 2045: California reverses course on nuclear energy - Energia nucleare<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Diablo Canyon receives license through 2045: NRC approves 20-year renewal for PG&E's California nuclear power plant.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/energianucleare.eu\/en\/diablo-canyon-to-stay-open-until-2045-california-reverses-course-on-nuclear-energy\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Diablo Canyon to stay open until 2045: California reverses course on nuclear energy - Energia nucleare\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Diablo Canyon receives license through 2045: NRC approves 20-year renewal for PG&E's California nuclear power plant.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/energianucleare.eu\/en\/diablo-canyon-to-stay-open-until-2045-california-reverses-course-on-nuclear-energy\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Energia nucleare\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2026-08-23T18:02:53+00:00\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Redazione Energia Nucleare\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Redazione Energia Nucleare\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"2 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\\\/\\\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/energianucleare.eu\\\/en\\\/diablo-canyon-to-stay-open-until-2045-california-reverses-course-on-nuclear-energy\\\/#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/energianucleare.eu\\\/en\\\/diablo-canyon-to-stay-open-until-2045-california-reverses-course-on-nuclear-energy\\\/\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"Redazione Energia Nucleare\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/energianucleare.eu\\\/en\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/2c3f466ad139658dfa60c575cf287fb7\"},\"headline\":\"Diablo Canyon to stay open until 2045: California reverses course on nuclear energy\",\"datePublished\":\"2026-08-23T18:02:53+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/energianucleare.eu\\\/en\\\/diablo-canyon-to-stay-open-until-2045-california-reverses-course-on-nuclear-energy\\\/\"},\"wordCount\":479,\"commentCount\":0,\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"CommentAction\",\"name\":\"Comment\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/energianucleare.eu\\\/en\\\/diablo-canyon-to-stay-open-until-2045-california-reverses-course-on-nuclear-energy\\\/#respond\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/energianucleare.eu\\\/en\\\/diablo-canyon-to-stay-open-until-2045-california-reverses-course-on-nuclear-energy\\\/\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/energianucleare.eu\\\/en\\\/diablo-canyon-to-stay-open-until-2045-california-reverses-course-on-nuclear-energy\\\/\",\"name\":\"Diablo Canyon to stay open until 2045: California reverses course on nuclear energy - Energia nucleare\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/energianucleare.eu\\\/en\\\/#website\"},\"datePublished\":\"2026-08-23T18:02:53+00:00\",\"author\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/energianucleare.eu\\\/en\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/2c3f466ad139658dfa60c575cf287fb7\"},\"description\":\"Diablo Canyon receives license through 2045: NRC approves 20-year renewal for PG&E's California nuclear power plant.\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/energianucleare.eu\\\/en\\\/diablo-canyon-to-stay-open-until-2045-california-reverses-course-on-nuclear-energy\\\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/energianucleare.eu\\\/en\\\/diablo-canyon-to-stay-open-until-2045-california-reverses-course-on-nuclear-energy\\\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/energianucleare.eu\\\/en\\\/diablo-canyon-to-stay-open-until-2045-california-reverses-course-on-nuclear-energy\\\/#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\\\/\\\/energianucleare.eu\\\/en\\\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"Diablo Canyon to stay open until 2045: California reverses course on nuclear energy\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/energianucleare.eu\\\/en\\\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/energianucleare.eu\\\/en\\\/\",\"name\":\"Energia nucleare\",\"description\":\"Notizie sul nucleare\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\\\/\\\/energianucleare.eu\\\/en\\\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/energianucleare.eu\\\/en\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/2c3f466ad139658dfa60c575cf287fb7\",\"name\":\"Redazione Energia Nucleare\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/f7573bf636adfceb968c63d469c0889af0a78eb4935f321c17f76df121e056a6?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/f7573bf636adfceb968c63d469c0889af0a78eb4935f321c17f76df121e056a6?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/f7573bf636adfceb968c63d469c0889af0a78eb4935f321c17f76df121e056a6?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"caption\":\"Redazione Energia Nucleare\"},\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/energianucleare.eu\\\/en\\\/author\\\/redazione\\\/\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"Diablo Canyon to stay open until 2045: California reverses course on nuclear energy - Energia nucleare","description":"Diablo Canyon receives license through 2045: NRC approves 20-year renewal for PG&E's California nuclear power plant.","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/energianucleare.eu\/en\/diablo-canyon-to-stay-open-until-2045-california-reverses-course-on-nuclear-energy\/","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"Diablo Canyon to stay open until 2045: California reverses course on nuclear energy - Energia nucleare","og_description":"Diablo Canyon receives license through 2045: NRC approves 20-year renewal for PG&E's California nuclear power plant.","og_url":"https:\/\/energianucleare.eu\/en\/diablo-canyon-to-stay-open-until-2045-california-reverses-course-on-nuclear-energy\/","og_site_name":"Energia nucleare","article_published_time":"2026-08-23T18:02:53+00:00","author":"Redazione Energia Nucleare","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"Redazione Energia Nucleare","Est. reading time":"2 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/energianucleare.eu\/en\/diablo-canyon-to-stay-open-until-2045-california-reverses-course-on-nuclear-energy\/#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/energianucleare.eu\/en\/diablo-canyon-to-stay-open-until-2045-california-reverses-course-on-nuclear-energy\/"},"author":{"name":"Redazione Energia Nucleare","@id":"https:\/\/energianucleare.eu\/en\/#\/schema\/person\/2c3f466ad139658dfa60c575cf287fb7"},"headline":"Diablo Canyon to stay open until 2045: California reverses course on nuclear energy","datePublished":"2026-08-23T18:02:53+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/energianucleare.eu\/en\/diablo-canyon-to-stay-open-until-2045-california-reverses-course-on-nuclear-energy\/"},"wordCount":479,"commentCount":0,"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"CommentAction","name":"Comment","target":["https:\/\/energianucleare.eu\/en\/diablo-canyon-to-stay-open-until-2045-california-reverses-course-on-nuclear-energy\/#respond"]}]},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/energianucleare.eu\/en\/diablo-canyon-to-stay-open-until-2045-california-reverses-course-on-nuclear-energy\/","url":"https:\/\/energianucleare.eu\/en\/diablo-canyon-to-stay-open-until-2045-california-reverses-course-on-nuclear-energy\/","name":"Diablo Canyon to stay open until 2045: California reverses course on nuclear energy - Energia nucleare","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/energianucleare.eu\/en\/#website"},"datePublished":"2026-08-23T18:02:53+00:00","author":{"@id":"https:\/\/energianucleare.eu\/en\/#\/schema\/person\/2c3f466ad139658dfa60c575cf287fb7"},"description":"Diablo Canyon receives license through 2045: NRC approves 20-year renewal for PG&E's California nuclear power plant.","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/energianucleare.eu\/en\/diablo-canyon-to-stay-open-until-2045-california-reverses-course-on-nuclear-energy\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/energianucleare.eu\/en\/diablo-canyon-to-stay-open-until-2045-california-reverses-course-on-nuclear-energy\/"]}]},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/energianucleare.eu\/en\/diablo-canyon-to-stay-open-until-2045-california-reverses-course-on-nuclear-energy\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/energianucleare.eu\/en\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"Diablo Canyon to stay open until 2045: California reverses course on nuclear energy"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/energianucleare.eu\/en\/#website","url":"https:\/\/energianucleare.eu\/en\/","name":"Energia nucleare","description":"Notizie sul nucleare","potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/energianucleare.eu\/en\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/energianucleare.eu\/en\/#\/schema\/person\/2c3f466ad139658dfa60c575cf287fb7","name":"Redazione Energia Nucleare","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/f7573bf636adfceb968c63d469c0889af0a78eb4935f321c17f76df121e056a6?s=96&d=mm&r=g","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/f7573bf636adfceb968c63d469c0889af0a78eb4935f321c17f76df121e056a6?s=96&d=mm&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/f7573bf636adfceb968c63d469c0889af0a78eb4935f321c17f76df121e056a6?s=96&d=mm&r=g","caption":"Redazione Energia Nucleare"},"url":"https:\/\/energianucleare.eu\/en\/author\/redazione\/"}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/energianucleare.eu\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2724","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/energianucleare.eu\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/energianucleare.eu\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/energianucleare.eu\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/25"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/energianucleare.eu\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2724"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/energianucleare.eu\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2724\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/energianucleare.eu\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2724"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/energianucleare.eu\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2724"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/energianucleare.eu\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2724"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}