Holtec International is now seeking additional support to help reopen the Palisades nuclear power plant in Van Buren County. It’s asked the state to commit around $300 million to the effort as it also seeks more than $1 billion from the U.S. Department of Energy. Holtec spokesperson Patrick O’Brien tells us several partners will have to come together to reopen Palisades.
“We’re continuing to work with the Department of Energy through that loan application process, and that financial commitment from Michigan and a power purchase agreement are both essential to making a return to operations feasible,” O’Brien said.
Both Republican and Democratic state elected officials support the possible Palisades reopening. State Representative Pauline Wendzel tells us it would be helpful to keep Palisades on the grid.
“Grid reliability is very important, the nuclear energy is one of those important aspects to that, and having one of our power plants disappear is not helping,” Wendzel said.
The state funds sought by Holtec for Palisades would be used to operate the plant when it can’t access the decommissioning trust fund. O’Brien tells us there’s no timetable for the proposed state support, while Holtec expects to hear something final from the Department of Energy by October. Meanwhile, decommissioning of the facility continues.
