Government to Guarantee Loans for Nuclear Power Plants

The Washington Post ^ | June 17, 2009 | Steven Mufson

[Ben Mugged]

The Energy Department is planning to award $18.5 billion in loan guarantees for the construction of new nuclear power plants to four utilities, government sources said today. The companies include UniStar Nuclear Energy, NRG Energy Inc., Scana Corp. and Southern Co.

Nuclear power advocates hope that the loan guarantees will help launch a new wave of nuclear power plants that use a new generation of technology; moreover, they note, nuclear plants do not emit greenhouse gases. But foes of nuclear power argue that the plants remain too expensive to build without federal assistance and that energy efficiency and renewable energy resources offer better alternatives. New plants could cost anywhere from $6 billion to $12 billion, industry executives say.

All four companies plan to add units at existing nuclear facilities, which should make regulatory approval and siting approval easier. Two of the firms are "merchant power" companies that sell electricity at unregulated prices; two are utilities that will be subject to regulation and will seek to recover costs from local ratepayers.

[4woodenboats]

Can someone explain how this will actually end up hurting our country? Otherwise it just defies logic.

See post #3

[4woodenboats]

What happens if the utility company that builds the reactors runs short on cash - does some cartoon figure from Lord Of The Rings confiscate the entire project for a penny on the dollar, then divide it up between the Black Panthers, Code Pink, Hamas, and the Socialist Workers Party, leaving U.S. taxpayers on the hook to pay the actual debt?

[kidd]

What happens if the utility company that builds the reactors runs short on cash...

They raise your electric rates.