What does it mean for the industry?
The Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) has
authorized Entergy’s (NYSE: ETR) 660-MW Pilgrim
nuclear plant in Plymouth, Mass., to continue
operating for an additional 20 years, until
mid-2032.
It’s all part of the bigger debate as to whether
nuclear energy will grow its market share in this
current climate or whether it will maintain it, or
even shrink. The debate also highlights the current
dissension among the NRC’s commissioners, and who
might replace the exiting NRC chair.
Outgoing NRC Chairman Greg Jaczko was the lone vote
against the license extension among the five-member
commission. The controversial Jaczko, who announced
his resignation May 21, was also the lone member of
the panel to vote against issuance of new nuclear
plant licenses in Georgia and South Carolina earlier
this year – which were NRC’s first such approvals in
more than 30 years.
The current 40-year operating license at Pilgrim was
set to expire June 8. With the long-sought-after
license extension now in hand, Entergy can perhaps
focus more attention on negotiating a new labor
agreement for the plant with Utility Workers Union
of America Local 369.
The labor contract expired earlier this month, and
Entergy hopes to reach a new four-year agreement. A
federal mediator has been called in to help the
parties overcome their differences.
Rep. Edward Markey, D-Mass., blasted the NRC’s
decision to approve the license renewal while many
opposition groups were still trying to raise
concerns about the plant before NRC.
“The NRC shouldn’t be short circuiting the process
and short-changing residents by moving forward with
license approval before all the efforts to improve
nuclear and environmental safety at Pilgrim Nuclear
Power Station have been resolved,” Markey said in a
May 25
news release.
Entergy Nuclear filed Pilgrim’s license renewal
application on Jan. 25, 2006, making this the
longest license review on record, which would appear
to contradict the claims that the review process had
been ‘short circuited.’
“During the NRC’s more than six years of review,
people were afforded multiple chances to attend
public meetings so regulators could get their input
and hear their concerns,” said Entergy Nuclear CEO
and Chief Nuclear Officer John Herron. “The public
also had almost unlimited access to the NRC’s record
of its extensive inspections of the plant."
Entergy said the plant produces enough power to
supply 10% of the electric demand in Massachusetts.
Wayne Barber is chief of power generation for
Generation Hub, a unit of Energy Central.
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