TEXAS: 1ST IN WIND, LOOKING AT NUKES

This follows on a previous story (NEW ENERGY AND TEXAS GOLD) that suggested Texas energy supply could become precarious if too dependent on burgeoning wind sources and new transmission. Now this plug in the same paper (the Austin American-Statesman)for new nuclear. Curious coincidence?

NewEnergyNews has acknowledged and will continue to acknowledge that fossil fuels and nuclear may be a necessary part of our energy mix in the coming 2 to 3 decades. The question we all have ask ourselves very soberly is what kind of infrastructure we want to build for the next generation.

The nuclear companies are racing to get permitted for building because the Energy Policy Act of 2005 provides huge subsidies and incentives to the 1st 6 reactors to get licensed: $2 billion in insurance against regulatory delays or legal challenges, production tax credits, loan guarantees and limitation of liability for a nuclear accident to $10 billion. Think about that.

NewEnergyNews believes the energy infrastructure the post-WWII baby-boom generation now builds will be its legacy, just as much as winning The War was the legacy of the “greatest generation” and winning the Cold War was the legacy of the “50s generation.” So what kind of a world do you want these kids now coming up and fighting this Mid-East mess to inherit? Climate change and a pile of nuclear waste? Or New Energy and a grid that serves it smartly?

Thanks to Austin cowgirl Cindy M. for the tip on this. Keep up the good work, Cindy.

South Texas first in line for next round of reactors; NRG Energy will be first company in 29 years to file application
Robert Elder, September 25, 2007 (Austin American-Statesman)

WHO
NRG Energy Inc.

The South Texas Project: Bigger than a Longhorn's pick-up.

WHAT
At least 3 major energy players are positioning themselves to be among the first to build new nuclear reactors to serve Texas.

WHEN
- This would be the first new US nuclear facility since the 1978 Three Mile Island nuclear accident.
- The 2 units would come get regulatory approval in 2010 and the 1st could come online in 2014, the 2nd in 2015.

WHERE
- NRG would build 2 new reactors at the Bay City (Matagorda County) South Texas Project where there are already 2 reactors owned and operated by Austin- and San Antonio-owned utilities.
- NRG Energy is based in Princeton, NJ.

WHY
- The Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) expects some 32 applicants for new US nuclear in the next 2 years.
- Nuclear supplies 20% of US electricity.
- TXU has applied for 4 reactors in Texas, Exelon Energy for 2.
- Despite talk of new technologies and new methods, projects in Finland and Taiwan are delayed and way over budget.
- Although it does not always get a lot of press, minor nuclear accidents happen frequently at plants around the world.
- The proposed new South Texas plant design, Advanced Boiling Water Reactor, has been used in Japan but not in the US. Some are nervous about a current atmosphere of reduced regulation. Citizen groups promise to study the proposal carefully.
- Besides federal incentives, there state benefits available to subsidize the energy companies.
- The South Texas plants promise the region 4000 to 6000 new jobs. 2 new units, 2660 megawatts, serving Austin, San Antonio, Houston and Corpus Christi.

How much of this stuff are we going to leave laying around for our kids to figure out what to do with? And do you really believe sticking it in a hole under a mountain in Nevada is any different than sweeping it under the carpet?

QUOTES
- Thad Hill, president, NRG Texas: "We know the kind of growth that is occurring in Texas…We need the power…The Texas market is encouraging new investment…And there are very accommodating local communities."
- Edwin Lyman, Union of Concerned Scientists: "We're quite concerned about the use of a lot of public money to subsidize the next generation of plants…There's no indication that the industry has learned how to build reactors more quickly and cheaply…"
- American-Statesman: “San Antonio's municipal utility is a partner in the expansion; Austin Energy has not committed to it.” (NewEnergyNews: Because Roger Duncan probably has his doubts but he’s got to keep the lights on.)