By Rich Heidorn Jr.
WASHINGTON — The White House convened a “Summit on Nuclear Energy” on Friday as the industry’s main trade group sounded an alarm over Entergy’s decision to shut down its FitzPatrick reactor in New York, just weeks after announcing the closure of its Pilgrim plant in Massachusetts.
The session appeared to be an attempt by the Obama administration to make up with the industry, which was upset this summer that the final Clean Power Plan did not do more to help existing nuclear plants. But with no major policy pronouncements emerging from the session, it’s unclear exactly what the industry gained. The Environmental Protection Agency’s carbon emission rule will credit states for new nuclear plants. But states losing existing plants will have to do more to meet their emission targets without the retiring reactors.
According to the Nuclear Energy Institute, nuclear power generates 63% of the nation’s emission-free electricity.
“Alarmingly, over the past three years, four reactors vital to regional economies and clean air efforts have been shut down prematurely already or will be retired prematurely within the next few years,” NEI said in a statement before the summit, referring also to Entergy’s Vermont Yankee, shut in December, and Dominion Resources’ retirement of its Kewaunee plant in Wisconsin in 2013. (See related story, Entergy Closing FitzPatrick Nuclear Plant in New York.)
“If the United States is to substantially reduce carbon emissions, we cannot afford to prematurely close any more nuclear power plants because of flawed electricity markets,” NEI continued. “At the same time, new reactor construction — including development of small modular reactors and other advanced reactor technologies — should be pursued vigorously.”
The summit featured remarks by a number of federal officials, including NRC Chairman Stephen Burns and Janet McCabe, acting assistant administrator for EPA’s Office of Air and Radiation.
McCabe offered little encouragement, saying that while “nuclear power can be a very vigorous tool” in compliance with the CPP, the rule is “not all powerful.”
“We can’t alone change the trajectory” of nuclear power’s economic competitiveness, she said.
Merchant nuclear units have suffered in RTOs’ single-price clearing markets because of low-cost natural gas and wind.
In states that engage in regional emissions trading to comply with the CPP, nuclear units should see increased revenue reflecting their carbon-free generation. Reliable nuclear plants in PJM also should benefit from the RTO’s new Capacity Performance rules because of the security provided by their on-site fuel supplies.
Exelon on Oct. 29 cited the CPP, and MISO’s commitment to changing its capacity market in Illinois, in granting a one-year reprieve to its money-losing Clinton reactor. (See related story, Exelon Defers Clinton Closure as MISO Hints at Capacity Changes in Illinois.)
Also speaking at the summit was David Christian, CEO of Dominion’s generation group, who said the company will ask NRC to approve a request for a second 20-year license extension for its 1,676-MW Surry generating plant. The two-unit plant’s current licenses expire in 2032 and 2033.
Burns said the agency is working with the Department of Energy to revise its regulatory framework, which is designed for light water reactors.
“We are confident we could license a non-light water reactor under the current framework. However, because the NRC’s reactor licensing regulations and guidance documents were developed based primarily on light water reactor technologies, we recognize the potential knowledge gaps for both the staff and prospective applicants,” he said.
