Progress SC Robinson 2 reactor cut to 66 pct

NEW YORK, Nov 9 (Reuters) - Progress Energy Inc's (PGN.N) 710-megawatt nuclear Unit 2 at the Robinson power station in South Carolina dipped to 66 percent by early Monday from full power early Friday, the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission said in a report.

The 905 MW Robinson station is located in Hartsville in Darlington County, about 70 miles northeast of Columbia, the state capital. There are a few units at Robinson, including the 180 MW coal Unit 1 (which entered service in 1960), the 710 MW nuclear Unit 2 (1971) and the 15 MW natural gas/oil turbine (1968).

The NRC renewed the plant's original 40-year operating license in 2004 for another 20 years until 2030.

One MW powers about 700 homes in the Carolinas.

Progress, of Raleigh, North Carolina, owns and operates more than 21,000 MW of generating capacity, markets energy commodities, and transmits and distributes electricity to about 3.1 million customers in North Carolina, South Carolina and Florida. (Reporting by Scott DiSavino; Editing by John Picinich)