PG&E Calif. Diablo Canyon 2 reactor back at full power

NEW YORK, Nov 16 (Reuters) - PG&E Corp's (PCG.N) 1,118-megawatt Unit 2 at the Diablo Canyon nuclear power plant in California returned to full power by early Monday from 73 percent early Friday after exiting a refueling, the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission said in a report.

The unit shut by Oct. 5.

It last shut for refueling from about Feb. 3 to April 14, 2008. It is on a 20- to 22-month refueling cycle.

The 2,240-MW Diablo Canyon station is located in Avila Beach in San Luis Obispo County about 195 miles (310 km) northwest of Los Angeles. The station has two units, the 1,122-MW Unit 1 and the 1,118-MW Unit 2, which entered service in 1985 and 1986.

Unit 1 dipped to 92 percent early Monday from full power early Friday.

One MW powers about 700 homes in California.

PG&E, of San Francisco, owns and operates more than 6,200 MW of generating capacity, markets energy commodities, and transmits and distributes electricity to almost 5.3 million customers and natural gas to 4.2 million customers in California. (Reporting by Scott DiSavino; Editing by John Picinich)