Sheldon Station is a coal-fired generating plant located near Hallam, Neb. The plant was constructed between 1958 and 1963 as an experimental nuclear power plant for the Atomic Energy Commission. After the Commission (today known as the Nuclear Regulatory Commission) acquired the information it needed, the nuclear portion of the facility was decommissioned and the equipment and parts were sent to other nuclear plants or disposal sites. What couldn’t be moved was sealed and buried in large vaults beneath the earth’s surface at the plant. The burial site is regularly monitored by the Nebraska Department of Health.
Today, Sheldon Station’s two boilers can generate 225 megawatts of electricity. Power generated here is distributed to Nebraska’s residents through transmission lines leading to Lincoln, Hastings and Beatrice. Additionally, the Mark T. Moore substation, located near the plant, receives and sends power via lines to Lincoln, Grand Island and southeast Nebraska.
Sheldon Station’s current generation record was set in 2002 at 1,442,114 MWh.