The Palisades nuclear power plant is another step closer to restarting.
Palisades owner Holtec International says the Nuclear Regulatory Commission has issued a draft Environmental Assessment and Finding of No Significant Impact on the environment from resumed power operations at Palisades. Holtec’s Nick Culp says this is another regulatory step the restart has to take, and everything remains on track for Palisades to resume operations in the fourth quarter of this year.
“We’ve completed several regulatory submittals, including an exemption request, a license transfer request, and a series of license amendments that specifically support the plant returning to commercial operation,” Culp said. “We are hopeful that those will be reviewed in a timely manner, and their approval is a prerequisite and is necessary for the plant to return to service.”
The U.S. Department of Energy’s Loan Programs Office is a cooperating agency on the draft environmental assessment just announced. Holtec closed a $1.52 billion loan guarantee with the LPO in September of 2024 to support the restart of Palisades, while the state of Michigan has put up another $300 million.
Culp says as the regulatory ducks are lined up in a row, work at the site in Covert Township is ongoing. He says when Palisades is back up and running, it will employ about 600 people. Right now, there are about 560 employees on site, along with hundreds of contractors.
