Nukes are licensed for 40 years. Then depending on lots of requirements, the plant license may be extended to 40 years.
Fuel rods after a period in the fuel pool are stored in a dry cask.
Thank you both!
So, it sounds like the plants were built with excess storage capacity or perhaps storage was extended.
I think that when plants were originally built, it was not clear how long they could remain operational. I am not sure that the incentives for extending their use are wise, however. It must be hard to resist the gain of continued operation over money already spent.
I don’t think Gates will bring any wisdom to the table.