Dominion Va. Surry 1 reactor up to 70 pct

NEW YORK, May 13 (Reuters) - Dominion Resources Inc's (D.N) 799-megawatt Unit 1 at the Surry nuclear power station in Virginia ramped up to 70 percent by early Wednesday from 28 percent early Tuesday after exiting a refueling earlier in the week, the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission said in a report.

The company shut the unit for refueling on April 19.

The unit last shut from about Oct. 21-Dec. 3, 2007. It is on an 18-month refueling cycle.

The 1,598 MW Surry station is located in Gravel Neck in Surry County, about 45 miles northwest of Norfolk, Virginia. There are two 799 MW Units 1 and 2 at the station, which entered service in 1972 and 1973. The NRC renewed the original 40-year operating licenses in 2003 for both units for another 20 years until 2032 and 2033.

Unit 2 continued to operate at full power.

One MW powers about 800 homes in Virginia.

Dominion, of Richmond, Virginia, owns and operates about 27,000 MW of generating capacity, markets energy commodities and transmits and distributes electricity to 2.4 million customers in Virginia and North Carolina. (Reporting by Scott DiSavino; Editing by John Picinich)