A Michigan nuclear power plant that was decommissioned in 2022 is set to become America’s first revived facility in the nation’s history.
The Biden Administration announced plans on Wednesday to grant a $1.52 billion loan to Holtect International, which could start by 2025 and provide clean energy to at least 800,000 homes.
The Palisades plant, located along Lake Michigan, was shuttered two years ago over concerns about faulty control rod drive seals that are necessary to control the fission rate of uranium and plutonium.
However, the Department of Energy (DOE) has granted the funds on the condition that Holtect satisfies technical, legal, environmental and financial requirements.
The Biden Administration announced plans on Wednesday to grant a $1.52 billion loan to Holtect International, which could see operations start by 2025 and could provide clean energy to at least 800,000 homes
US Secretary of Energy Jennifer M. Granholm said Wednesday: ‘Nuclear power is our single largest source of carbon-free electricity, directly supporting 100,000 jobs across the country and hundreds of thousands more indirectly.
‘President Biden’s Investing in America agenda is supporting and expanding this vibrant clean energy workforce here in Michigan with significant funding for the Holtec Palisades nuclear power plant.’
The plant is in Van Buren County’s Covert, about 40 miles west of Kalamazoo, which is home to around 3,000 people.
The town spans thirty-five square miles, featuring dense forests and blueberry farms.
The plant is in Van Buren County’s Covert, about 40 miles west of Kalamazoo, which is home to around 3,000 people. The town spans thirty-five square miles, featuring dense forests and blueberry farms
The median income for a household in the township was $22,829, and the median income for a family was $28,586.
Florida-based Holtec said the plant would employ more than 600 workers, with about 45 percent of the workforce at the site coming from union labor once restarted.
And an additional 1,000 jobs are expected to be added overtime.
Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitmer said: ‘Today, Holtec has secured a $1.5 billion conditional commitment for a loan from the U.S. Department of Energy to reopen the Palisades Nuclear Power Plant, protecting 600 good-paying, high-skill jobs and clean, reliable power for 800,000 homes.
‘Once open, Palisades will be the first successfully restarted nuclear power plant in American history, driving $363 million of regional economic impact and helping Michigan lead the future of clean energy.
‘I am so grateful to my bipartisan partners in the Michigan Legislature, the Biden-Harris Administration, Holtec, and labor for coming together to get this done.
‘Together, we are showing the world that Michigan is a place where history is made by hardworking people.’
The re-started Palisades plant would avoid more than 4.47 million tons of carbon emissions annually, bringing the total to 111 million tons of CO2 emissions during its projected 25 years of operation.
The Palisades plant, located along Lake Michigan, was shuttered two years ago over concerns about faulty control rod drive seals, which are necessary to control the fission rate of uranium and plutonium
That equates to the annual emissions of removing more than 970,000 gasoline-powered cars from the road.
Those predictions would play a significant role in the administration’s goal of decarbonizing the country’s power grid by 2035 and the entire economy by 2050.
The company also plans to build its first two small modular reactor (SMR) units at the site, which will not be part of the project that is eligible for the loan.
Holtec Palisades has already procured signed long-term Power Purchase Agreements (PPAs) for the full power output with rural electric co-ops Wolverine Power Cooperative and Hoosier Energy in Michigan, Illinois, and Indiana.
However, the Nuclear Regulatory Commission declared Palisades one of the four worst-performing plants in the country in 2012.
Construction of the plant began in 1967 and it connected to the grid in 1971.
