Hope springs eternal in the breast of Vermont Yankee supporters who maintain that, even after countless leaks, squeaks and outright collapses; even after the legislature voted to let it go, and even after the man who led that vote is seated as Governor, there still could be some way to keep the infernal thing in operation. In today’s Free Press, VY spokesman Larry Smith and Brad Ferland of Vermont Energy Partnership both expressed the hope that the Legislature could somehow be persuaded to take up the matter again; and Steve Costello of CVPS says
“If it could be shown to be safe, we want it,
But there’s the rub. Every story coming out of VY over the past two years has provided more reason to believe that it is definitely unsafe to operate the plant beyond it’s predicted closure date.
Apparently, supporters think that the sale of VY to a different entity could somehow put things right again; but simple commonsense predicts that any new owner of the antediluvian facility would most likely be regarding it as a strategic liability to be minimally maintained and mined for whatever tax credits or incentives might be available before an unceremonious death- dump on Vermont’s front stoop. And a couple of years of marginally cheaper power are supposed to be enough to keep us on the hook? Please... we may be a rural state but we weren’t born yesterday!
Some, like Orleans Senator Vince Iluzzi envision a scenario in which the sale of VY to a different entity might allow the NCR (Nuclear Regulatory Commission) to overrule Vermont’s Legislature and renew VY’s license unilaterally.
“Vermont may not have jurisdiction over Vermont Yankee,” said Illuzzi, who voted against the plant in the Senate this year and said if there were a new vote, he’s not sure how he would vote.
Now that would be really well-received by fiercely independent Vermonters.
Arne Gundersen, who advises the Legislature on all things nuclear, doubts that the NRC would intrude to such a degree, although he can well see Entergy courting any legal maneuver that might further delay the inevitable shut-down.
That’s a little like sending the Lusitania in to rescue the Titanic,” he said.
One thing is certain, before that glow-farm on the banks of the Connecticut River is finally shutdown, VY and her owners will have milked every opportunity available for delay.
Here are the comments I wrote for the Free Press. They should provide some clarity here.
First, the headline: “Some hold out hope Vermont Yankee can stay open.” Some also hold out hope for Elvis’s return as well, but most newspapers don’t bother to report it.
Second, “Deporter77389” asks: “Without nuclear, coal, oil, etc., can someone tell me how you plan to heat and light the state?” There are, in fact, a plethora of plans with detailed answers to this question. The simplest is this: the New England grid has excess capacity of over 5,000 MW, making VY’s 640MW small change. For those who prefer to support in-state sources (for economic reasons) and more responsible use of existing resources, several plans have been proposed to replace VT’s portion of VY power with efficiency and renewably sourced power.
Third, to those like AIV arguing that shutting VY will mean significantly higher rates, it’s time to put up, or shut up. If VY’s rates doubled, consumer bills would have increased by about 10%.
However, there is no longer any plausible chance that the rates on VY power will double. Entergy’s last best offer was 35% above the old contract price for 2012 and now appears to be about 20% above the expected market price of 5 cents. The most probable scenario therefore is that rates will go DOWN without VY.
Fourth, “jcarter2” misuses his sources to arrive at precisely the wrong legal conclusion. The PG&E decision, puts it quite clearly: “Congress has preserved the dual regulation of nuclear powered electricity generation: the Federal Government maintains complete control of the safety and “nuclear” aspects of energy generation, whereas the States exercise their traditional authority over economic questions such as the need for additional generating capacity, the type of generating facilities to be licensed, land use, and ratemaking.” Those waiting for the courts to overturn VT’s decision are going to have a long wait, I suspect.
Finally, to all those waiting for a new company to buy Entergy’s turkey, it’s appropriate to inquire why anyone would want to do this. Electricity prices are expected to remain low in New England for years; continued operations would require substantial investments, and it is improbable that a new operator will be accepted without adding millions to the decommissioning fund. Given all this plus the obvious regulatory hurdles means that any such purchase would be an exceedingly high risk venture with a very low probability of substantial return. That proverbial bridge in Brooklyn is a better gamble!
& more chicanery from Entergy charlatans. Hoping VT will not be fooled.
If they did not continue this charade, their stock price which has already dropped would drop like a rock. Though they have other power plants, nuclear & carbon, VY continuing debacle is dragging down the price of shares. Natural gas prices have also fallen sharply. Four state probe which just ended w/a guilty verdict, another ripple.
http://www.ago.state.ms.us/ind…
http://www.evacuationplans.org…
Analysts have expressed this as a negative. Unless they can make it appear it likely they could rise from the ashes, it would be curtains.
http://www.platts.com/RSSFeedD…
http://torontostar.morningstar…
Some employees would bail. They could end up paying the rest of them a bonus (forgot what it’s called) to stay.
The state of VT is a battleground as Entergy continues w/Douglas plan to subjugate VT w/a forced occupation if necessary. The greatest obstacle to this are the residents.
It is therefore imperative to win the trust of VTers, which is why they are taking case directly to residents, rather than investing in state campaign races w/their continued IAMVY media blitz, including VT businesses, IAM4VY, some declaring if VY closes, they will leave & storming online forums which attack dissent & peddle their propaganda nonstop.
Pronuclear claque, from around the US, including some familiar names as well as a high level Entergy staffer, descending upon & also flooding local news forum threads en masse w/ea newsworthy item to shout down dissent & peddle their inaccurate, distorted, hopelessly mangled supposed facts as they have done for nearly a year.
Timeline I put together showing Entergy’s continuing plot to dump plant & what was taking place shortly prior to & during. Also, Entergy attempted to link this heist to PPA w/Jay Thayer threatening Entergy would likely pull out of VT if Enexus/EquaGen not approved.
http://www.topix.com/forum/cit…
When NY was approached, shortly thereafter made it’s interest contingent upon VY being removed from the mix.
Behavior throughout is that of a company in deep trouble, while trying to maintain appearances to the contrary.