nuclear-news

In a news release sent late in the afternoon, Duke officials said the company made the decision because of delays by the Nuclear Regulatory Commission in issuing licenses for new plants, and because of recent legislative changes in Florida. The proposed plant — and how the company was raising money for it — have been debated for some time in Florida.

Duke Energy Corp. has been charging its customers nuclear cost recovery fees for the two, planned 1,100-megawatt nuclear units in Levy County. Through these fees, Duke customers have paid $1.5 billion for the plant so far.

Florida State Rep. Mike Fasano, R-Pasco County, said Thursday that he wasn’t surprised by Duke’s announcement.

“I’ve been saying for years that Duke had no intention of building these power plants yet they continue charging the customers for it,” Fasano said. He’s tried for several years to repeal the cost recovery fee.

The state’s Public Service Commission and the state legislature should have “been more aggressive” with Duke and asked more questions, he said……….

The announcement comes just a few years after U.S. nuclear industry executives said they were on the cusp of a revival.

That revival fell short as new technology allowed drillers to tap more natural gas within the United States, which increased supplies and pushed down prices. In states where utilities operate as monopolies, they are reluctant to ask their regulators for permission to build enormously expensive nuclear plants, or even fix old ones, when building gas-fired factories is so cheap. In places where utilities sell power into the open market, the low prices don’t counter the financial risk of building expensive nuclear plants………….

, utilities have shuttered older plants. In June, Southern California Edison announced it would close its San Onofre plant rather than fix damaged equipment that critics said could never be safely replaced. The two reactors were idled in January 2012, when a small radiation leak led to the discovery of unusual damage to hundreds of new tubes carrying radioactive water.

Dominion Resources Inc. announced late last year it would close the Kewaunee Power Station in Wisconsin because it couldn’t find a buyer.http://www.newsobserver.com/2013/08/01/3075631/fla-rep-duke-energy-wont-build.html