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Nuclear energy sector may be permanently discredited over San Onofre debacle

fearSouthern California Edison’s Problems Ensnare Entire Nuclear Energy Sector Forbes, Ken Silverstein, 11 June 13 The nuclear energy sector has taken a blow now that Southern CaliforniaEdison has decided to permanently close its troubled nuclear plant. Safety is a key concern. But so is honesty and transparency. “….. nuclear energy experts are telling this reporter that the episode at SONGS does not boost confidence in the industry or its quality assurance processes. That will all come into play as the utilities seek to renew their older operating licenses. As a practical matter, the industry’s leading voice, the Nuclear Energy Institute, has remained mum on the subject, as has its leading utilities: Exelon EXC -0.61% Corp., Duke Energy, Dominion Resources and Entergy Corp….. the utility estimates that the decommissioning cost will run $2.7 billion, of which 90 percent has already been set aside. Basically, the spent fuel rods must first be cooled in pools of water before they will be stored in above-ground concrete-encased steel casks.

Overall, the price tag associated with the shutdown of SONGS is estimated to be $700 million. Chairman Craver explains that four potential pots of money exists from which to pay that cost: ratepayers, shareholders, insurance companies and Mitsubishi Heavy…..

it is not the decommissioning of the facility that is the big news; rather, it is the events leading up to that closure, which have culminated in criminal and civil inquiries as to whether the utility has been forthright and above board.

Ultimately, it could all settle and allow life at Southern California Edison to normalize. But the same may not hold true for the overall nuclear sector, which has been blemished by the lack of  candor and communications..

June 12, 2013 - Posted by | general

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