Former Sens. Bayh (D., Ind.) and Gregg (R., N.H.) are co-chairmen of Nuclear Matters, a nuclear-industry-funded interest group. They announced in a Wall Street Journal article that there is a significant benefit in keeping well-functioning nuclear-energy plants open. They claim that the power customers (general public) also do not give enough credence to the significant benefit of keeping well-functioning nuclear energy plants open. The benefits of maintaining these plants clearly outweigh the costs of the alternate energy proposals that are being considered. First, these plants contribute to our energy diversity.
Having a diverse fuel mix helps keep electricity prices lower and less volatile for consumers. Nuclear plants also make significant economic and job contributions to their communities. In Illinois, a state-sponsored study concluded that the closure of three at-risk nuclear plants would have a significant negative economic impact, including $1.8 billion in annual lost economic activity and more than 7,800 job losses. Nuclear-energy plants produce 63 per cent of the U.S. carbon-free electricity. The emissions impact of premature reactor closures is real. These plants are unmatched in reliability. They provide about 20 per cent of the U.S. energy needed and maintain an average reliability of 85 to 90 per cent. Changes must be made to electricity markets to ensure they properly value the attributes of carbon-free power, always-on baseload capacity and fuel and technology diversity. Legislators and regulators should do everything they can to ensure further premature nuclear shutdowns do not occur.
Original URL: https://www.wsj.com/articles/no-premature-closure-of-nuke-plants-letters-to-the-editor-1430334718
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