The Palisades Nuclear Generating Station is located on Lake Michigan, 5 miles south of South Haven, Michigan. It was completed in 1971 at a cost of one hundred and forty nine million dollars. It contains one pressurized water reactor that can produce one hundred and seventy five thousand kilowatts of power when operating at full capacity. It is owned and operated by the Entergy company which purchased it in 2006 for three hundred and eighty million dollars.
The plant's original operating license was set to expire in 2011. In 2005, an application was filed with the Nuclear Regulatory Commission for an addition twenty years of operation which would expire in 2031. The extension request was granted in 2007.
Old reactors develop more and more problems as time goes by and become more costly to keep in operation. The Palisades plant is no exception. The plant has had many technical and management problems that have resulted in numerous shutdowns over the years. After multiple unplanned shutdowns in 2011 and 2012, the plant was classified as one of the four worst performing power reactors in the U.S. Operations improved in 2013. One major concern at the plant is the embrittlement of the steel used in construction of the reactor by the steady bombardment of neutrons from the radioactive fuel.
Several old U.S. reactors have been shut in the past couple of years because of operation problems and the stiff competitions from cheap oil and natural gas. Entergy has shut down some of its nuclear plants and is planning to shut down more. They have just announced that they will shut the Palisades plant permanently in 2018. About six hundred workers will be affected. Entergy says that shuttering the plant will save ratepayers as much as one hundred and seventy two million dollars. Total savings will be in the range of three hundred and forty four million dollars.
Entergy has requested permission from state regulators to shut the plant and to end a fifteen year power supply contract with Consumer Energy that was signed in 2007. The CEO of Entergy said, "We determined that a shutdown in 2018 is prudent when comparing the transaction to the business risks of continued operation."
Members of the state government complain that shutting the plant will affect the regional economy and raise concerns about the supply of electricity in the region after the plant is closed. The Governor's office issued the following statement, "I’m certain the Michigan Public Service Commission will look at this very closely and examine the implications for the reliability and affordability of electricity in Michigan, as well as protection of the environment,” Snyder’s statement read. “Palisades is a major employer and economic engine for the region, so the continued operation of the plant through 2018 and the proposed community contributions would be vital. We need to make sure we use the next two years to wisely plan the use of state and local resources to adapt to whatever decision is made."
Palisades Nuclear Generating Station:
