Indian Point Will Be America’s Fukushima At The Sixth Seal

Cuomo administration unveils plan to save some nuclear facilities

Indian Point. (Patrick Stahl)

By Scott Waldman 5:26 a.m. | Jan. 25, 2016 2
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ALBANY — The Cuomo administration’s plan to save nuclear power plants will force utilities to pay for emissions credits that cover their losses in the face of cheap natural gas.

On Thursday, the administration began proceeding with the Clean Energy Standard, which Gov. Andrew Cuomo ordered to be completed by July to reach the state’s clean energy goals of powering half of the electrical grid with wind, solar and other sources by 2030. However, at least two of the state’s nuclear reactors are in danger of closing within the next few years and would significantly increase air pollution because they would be replaced by fossil-fuel burning power plants in the near future.

The administration policy will prolong the life of nuclear facilities for a few years, to serve as a bridge to the cleaner-energy options. To meet that goal, the state Department of Public Service is recommending a policy to require utilities to purchase a certain amount of nuclear power. Utilities and other energy companies, such as energy service companies, will purchase power from nuclear facilities.

“These zero emissions credits will represent the emissions-free value of energy produced by the nuclear power plants specifically,” said Scott Weiner, deputy for markets and innovation at DPS, at Thursday’s meeting.

The administration’s treatment of nuclear facilities could serve as a national model for other states, where nuclear plants are also struggling to compete against cheaper power sources.

Nuclear facilities do not produce air pollution like power sources that burn fossil fuels. The state’s nuclear fleet is struggling to compete against an influx of cheap natural gas, largely from neighboring Pennsylvania. The James A. FitzPatrick plant in Oswego County has already announced it will close within the next year. The R.E. Ginna facility on Lake Ontario is also in danger of closing, but is currently being subsidized by ratepayers because it is needed for electrical grid reliability.

States are also under pressure to reduce air pollution from power sources under the Obama administration’s Clean Power Plan. While New York is on track to meet its federal emissions reduction target, the loss of two or more reactors would make it considerably more difficult.

The owner of the FitzPatrick facility, Entergy, says the administration’s actions come too late to save it. The plant, which will lose an estimated $60 million this year, has to make refueling decisions now and has been unable to reach a deal with the Cuomo administration to stay open.

Of particular interest is how the plan will exclude the Indian Point nuclear center, which is also owned by Entergy but which Cuomo wants to close because of its proximity to New York City. Indian Point, located in Westchester, is profitable and currently undergoing the federal relicensing process. It also produces 2,000 megawatts of power, or about a quarter of the power for New York City and the lower Hudson Valley and would be replaced in the near future by gas-fired plants.

Entergy has two separate lawsuits against the Cuomo administration, one for interfering in the state’s energy markets and another for targetting Indian Point.

State officials referred to licensed plants as the beneficiaries of the Clean Energy Standard, which should not exclude Indian Point, said Entergy vice president Mike Twomey. He said Indian Point is fully licensed and should not be considered as separate under the plan from other nuclear facilities.

“It appears the state is attempting to draw a distinction between Indian Point and the upstate plants based on its license and there is no distinction,” he said.

Officials from Exelon, which owns the Ginna plant as well as the Nine Mile Point facility outside Rochester on Lake Ontario, praised the Cuomo administration plan.

“Progressive energy policies will help ensure that Exelon’s upstate nuclear stations can continue delivering zero-carbon electricity and driving local economies for many years to come,” said Joe Dominguez, Exelon’s executive vice president of governmental and regulatory affairs and public policy, in a statement.

Saving nuclear facilities will likely cost consumers. If utilities are forced to buy more expensive power, that will be passed along to customers.

The Clean Energy Standard requirements would last through 2020 and with additional targets added through 2023, Weiner said at Thursday’s meeting.