Part 2 of 2 Parts (Please read Part 1 first)
     Morefield was also concerned about access to uranium. He said, “It’s unfortunate, but most of the world’s largest suppliers of uranium are not located in the United States. If Virginia is going to be serious about building more nuclear reactors, we must first lift the moratorium on uranium mining in Virginia.” (The biggest unmined uranium deposit in the U.S. is Coal Hill, in Pittsylvania County, Virginia. Virginia enacted its ban on uranium mining in 1982 because of concerns about environmental and public safety hazards.)
     Delegate James W. Morefield said that Republican and Democratic policy makers understand that fossil fuels will not last forever. He said, “If we are going to focus on the use of alternative sources of energy it must be done in manner that is cost effective and not a burden on people who are struggling to pay their utility bills.”
     Governor Youngkin insisted that his new Plan takes concerns about the affordability of electricity in Virginia into account. He added that, “A growing Virginia must have reliable, affordable and clean energy for Virginia’s families and businesses. We need to shift to realistic and dynamic plans. The 2022 Energy Plan will meet the power demands of a growing economy and ensures Virginia has that reliable, affordable, clean and growing supply of power by embracing an all-of-the-above energy plan that includes natural gas, nuclear, renewables and the exploration of emerging sources to satisfy the growing needs of Commonwealth residents and businesses.”
     Youngkin said that retiring baseload generation in favor of solar and wind energy would reduce Virginia’s electricity reliability. He also said, “Nuclear is nearly three times more reliable than both wind and solar. As a result, the industrial world relies on continuous baseload generators such as natural gas, nuclear and coal. Cost, technical concerns related to utility scale storage, and transmission upgrades demand prudence before removing current baseload capacity.”
     Youngkin’s Plan said that the VCEA’s mandates are an “inflexible, 30-year determination with a prescribed route that currently cannot be delivered and do not contain any guidelines ensuring reasonable energy costs for Virginian consumers.”
     Youngkin also said that the VCEA depends on Virginia outsourcing reliable baseload capacity to other states. This would increase Virginia’s dependence on electricity imports. This would result in supply and transmission of energy to Virginia homes and business having the potential to become less reliable than today. (Many of the states that could supply electricity to Virginia have a high percentage of coal and natural gas generation.)
    Terry Kilgore from Scott County is the House Majority Leader of Virginia legislature. He released a statement in response to the SMR Plan. He said, “I want to thank Governor Youngkin for the release of his 2022 Virginia Energy Plan, which outlines a reliable, affordable energy future and includes several exciting opportunities for Southwest Virginia. His endorsement of small modular nuclear reactors supports a technology that can innovate and revitalize abandoned coal mines and diversify Southwest Virginia’s economy.”