Nuclear

Michigan could provide $300m to reopen nuclear power plant

State money could be used as bridge funding to pay for restart efforts at the 800 MW Palisades station.

Michigan could chip in as much $300 million to help restart the 800 MW Palisades nuclear power plant, which is currently being decommissioned. 

Holtec International bought the plant in 2022 and shuttered it with an eye toward decommissioning the facility under an agreement with the Nuclear Regulatory Commission. Holtec has applied for federal dollars to help get the plant running again. It hopes to tap a $6 billion fund at the Department of Energy earmarked to preserve the U.S. nuclear reactor fleet and associated jobs.

Nuclear energy is considered key to meeting Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer’s (D) climate goals as more solar and wind power infrastructure is built out. A spokesperson was quoted as saying the nuclear plant is a “critical energy source and economic driver” for the region and that the governor’s office was in touch with Holtec and working to secure federal funding.

Local climate advocates also reportedly support the plant for its ability to generate emission-free electricity.

State money could be used as bridge funding to pay for restart efforts at Palisades. Federal energy officials are reviewing a $1 billion grant application, expected to be the primary investment in the nuclear plant restart.

Holtec officials were quoted as saying it would take hundreds of millions of dollars for facility renovations and to buy nuclear fuel.

New nuclear?

Michigan utility regulators are studying whether the state should build more nuclear power plants. A draft report is expected by year’s end.

The Energy Department’s Civil Nuclear Credit Program was created by the infrastructure bill signed into law in November 2021. The program allows reactor owners and operators to apply for and bid on credits to support their continued operations.

While the first award cycle limited eligibility to owners or operators of reactors that had announced intentions to retire within the four-year award period, the second cycle expanded eligibility to those that were at risk of closing by the end of the four-year award period, including reactors that stopped operating after Nov. 15, 2021.

That opened up an opportunity for the Palisades nuclear plant to re-open. Previously owned by Entergy, the 800 MW plant was shut down in May 2022 and ownership transferred to Holtec International for decommissioning.

California lawsuit

Meanwhile, in California an environmental group on April 11 sued to block Pacific Gas & Electric from seeking to extend the federal operating licenses for California’s last nuclear power plant.

According to the Associated Press, a complaint filed in San Francisco Superior Court by Friends of the Earth asked the court to prohibit the utility from sidestepping a 2016 agreement with environmentalists and plant workers to close the twin-domed Diablo Canyon Nuclear Power Plant by 2025.

The possibility of a longer operating run emerged last year after Democratic Gov. Gavin Newsom and the Legislature opened the way for PG&E to seek an extended lifespan for the twin reactors. The company intends to apply to the Nuclear Regulatory Commission by the end of the year to extend operations by as much as two decades.

The operating license for the Unit 1 reactor expires next year and the Unit 2 license expires in 2025.

PG&E said in a statement it had not yet seen the lawsuit, but that as a regulated utility it will follow state policy.

The lawsuit marks the latest development in a long-running fight over the operation and safety of the decades-old plant, which Newsom says should keep running beyond 2025 to ward off possible blackouts as California transitions to solar and other renewable energy sources.

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