Entergy's Vermont Yankee reactor back at full power

NEW YORK, March 13 (Reuters) - Entergy Corp's (ETR.N: Quote, Profile, Research) 506-megawatt Vermont Yankee nuclear power unit in Vermont was back at full power early Thursday, up from 65 percent of capacity early Wednesday, the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission said in its power reactor status report.

The unit, in Vernon, Vermont, 80 miles north of Hartford, Connecticut, was reduced for a planned quarterly rod pattern exchange, a spokesman for the plant said previously.

Nuclear power operators adjust the pattern of the control rods to maximize unit efficiency.

A control rod is made of chemical elements capable of absorbing neutrons that control the speed of the fission of uranium.

One MW powers about 1,000 homes in Vermont.

Entergy, of New Orleans, owns and operates about 30,000 MW of generating capacity, markets energy commodities, and transmits and distributes power to 2.6 million customers in Arkansas, Louisiana, Mississippi and Texas. (Reporting by Eileen Moustakis; Editing by John Picinich)