Legislator opinion mixed on VY's continued operation
Aug 29 - McClatchy-Tribune Regional News - Bob Audette Brattleboro Reformer, Vt.
Whether state legislators vote in the upcoming 2010 legislative session in favor of Vermont Yankee's continued operation is dependent on a number of factors.
>
> Those include the status of the nuclear power plant's
> decommissioning
> fund, whether Entergy is allowed to spin off Yankee into a separate
> holding
> company, if Entergy and the state's utilities agree to a purchase
> agreement
> that allows Vermonters to buy electricity at a low fixed rate, and
> whether
> the plant's owner addresses all of the problems discovered during a
> recent
> reliability assessment.
>
> Entergy, which owns and operates Yankee, has applied to the
> Nuclear
> Regulatory Commission to extend the operating license of the power
> plant for
> another 20 years, from 2012 to 2032. In addition to NRC approval,
> Entergy
> must also receive a certificate of public good from the Public
> Service Board
> and the OK from the Vermont Legislature.
>
> Rep. Ann Manwaring, D-Wilmington, said she is conflicted over
> whether
> to vote in favor of the continued operation.
>
> "It's possible," she said.
>
> But of major concern for her, just as with other legislators, is
> Entergy's proposal to spin off Yankee into a holding company called
> Enexus.
> Entergy has proposed spinning off six of its oldest nuclear reactors
> into
> Enexus to raise $3.5 billion to pay off outstanding debt and to reward
> stockholders.
>
> Manwaring said she doesn't see how any guarantees that Entergy
> makes
> can assure the financial integrity of Enexus.
>
> The only asset Enexus will have is the "six aging nuclear
> plants," she
> said.
>
> "I fear that will leave a huge burden on the taxpayers," said
> Manwaring.
>
> "Decision makers are looking at (Enexus) and are less confident
> in
> what Entergy is trying to do," said Rep. Virginia Milkey, D-
> Brattleboro.
>
> Even those in favor of Yankee's continued operation, the Enexus
> spin
> off is of major concern.
>
> "I'm not comfortable with that yet," said Rep. Richard Hube,
> R-Londonderry. "You've got to have the resources and the capability to
> fulfill your part of the contract."
>
> Rep. John Moran, D-Wardsboro, said that though he hasn't made
> up his
> mind about his vote, he worries that Enexus won't be up to the job of
> keeping the plant running smoothly.
>
> "I am very concerned about spinning it off into a heavily
> leveraged
> debt-ridden corporation," he said. "It may not be able to meet its
> financial
> responsibility. I don't want it to be the FairPoint of Vermont."
>
> Even though she supports Yankee's continued operation, Rep. Patty
> O'Donnell, R-Vernon, said a purchase price agreement has to be
> ironed out
> prior to the vote. She is also concerned about the decommissioning
> fund, she
> said, though she doesn't believe Entergy has to make sure the fund
> is whole
> by 2012.
>
> "There has to be some plan to have that fund full at the end of
> its
> license," said O'Donnell. "I want to see the plan for it."
>
> Other legislators are also concerned about the costs of
> cleaning up
> the site, whether the plant closes in 2012 or 2032.
>
> Making the decommissioning fund whole "Is almost certainly
> going to be
> part of the relicensing vote," said Rep. Richard Marek, D-Newfane.
>
> Twice the Legislature has passed bills requiring Entergy to
> make the
> decommissioning fund whole by 2012 and twice Gov. James Douglas has
> vetoed
> those bills.
>
> But the Legislature might have the upper hand come 2010, he said.
>
> The authorization for continued operation comes in the form of a
> resolution and not a bill which the governor can again veto. This
> means the
> Legislature can insert a condition into the resolution demanding
> full-funding of the decommissioning fund for continued operation to
> move
> forward.
>
> The Legislature doesn't even have to pass a resolution, said
> Marek.
>
> "If the Legislature does nothing, relicensing doesn't occur. The
> Legislature has absolute power to deny relicensing."
>
> But Marek said his mind is pretty much made up about Yankee's
> future.
>
> "I don't believe the plant should be relicensed," he said.
> "It's at
> the end of its planned life and its history in recent years has raised
> additional concerns."
>
> Other legislators have also made up their minds about their
> decision.
>
> Milkey said she has been against continued operation since
> 1990. Even
> if Entergy meets all of the conditions outlined above, she will
> still vote
> against it, she said.
>
> "It's a dangerous technology," said Milkey.
>
> "They have a license that goes to 2012," said Rep. David Deen,
> D-Westminster. "At that point they should close. I have been
> consistent
> since 1986. That's how I'm going to vote."
>
> Senate President Pro Tem Peter Shumlin, D-Windham, has been a
> constant
> critic of how Entergy manages the plant. Just the same, he said, he
> will
> reserve judgment on continued operation until all the cows have come
> home.
>
> "It's not fair to make a final decision until we have all the
> facts,"
> he said, adding "I'm extremely skeptical about Entergy Louisiana's
> future in
> Vermont."
>
> He is also concerned about how Entergy plans to safely store
> nuclear
> waste in Vermont for the long term. The federal government had
> promised to
> assume ownership of the spent fuel and remove it to a depository,
> which has
> not panned out.
>
> "The federal government broke its promise," he said. "Now it's
> our
> problem."
>
> A purchase price agreement and the full funding of the
> decommissioning
> fund are non-negotiable, he said. Without a purchase agreement and
> resolution of the decommissioning fund and the spent fuel issues, said
> Shumlin, "I can assure you there will be no vote on Vermont Yankee."
>
> "We're still talking," said Steve Costello, spokesman for Central
> Vermont Public Service, which hasn't taken a position on whether the
> plant
> should be allowed to continue operation past 2012.
>
> Just the same, he said, "I wouldn't bet on the Legislature
> approving
> continued operation without real value in a purchase agreement."
>
> Green Mountain Power has maintained that if Entergy meets all the
> state and federal requirements, from cost perspective and the
> state's carbon
> footprint, continued operation is in Vermont's best interests, said
> Dottie
> Schnure, spokeswoman for Green Mountain Power.
>
> But without a purchase price agreement, it's hard to see how
> continued
> operation would benefit the state's ratepayers.
>
> The utilities now have a revenue-sharing agreement in place for
> the
> first 10 years following the authorization to continue operation, said
> Schnure.
>
> "If electric prices go very high that revenue-sharing agreement
> is
> worth millions of dollars," she said.
>
> The revenue-sharing agreement guarantees money to the utilities
> anytime the price of electricity on the open market exceeds 6.1
> cents per
> kilowatt hour.
>
> In July, that price hit a low of 3.3 cents, but the average for
> 2007
> and 2008 was 7.5 cents. The highest it has been in the last two
> years was
> 11.3 cents.
>
> Bob Audette can be reached at [email protected], or at
> 802-254-2311, ext. 273.
Whether state legislators vote in the upcoming 2010 legislative session in favor of Vermont Yankee's continued operation is dependent on a number of factors.
>
> Those include the status of the nuclear power plant's
> decommissioning
> fund, whether Entergy is allowed to spin off Yankee into a separate
> holding
> company, if Entergy and the state's utilities agree to a purchase
> agreement
> that allows Vermonters to buy electricity at a low fixed rate, and
> whether
> the plant's owner addresses all of the problems discovered during a
> recent
> reliability assessment.
>
> Entergy, which owns and operates Yankee, has applied to the
> Nuclear
> Regulatory Commission to extend the operating license of the power
> plant for
> another 20 years, from 2012 to 2032. In addition to NRC approval,
> Entergy
> must also receive a certificate of public good from the Public
> Service Board
> and the OK from the Vermont Legislature.
>
> Rep. Ann Manwaring, D-Wilmington, said she is conflicted over
> whether
> to vote in favor of the continued operation.
>
> "It's possible," she said.
>
> But of major concern for her, just as with other legislators, is
> Entergy's proposal to spin off Yankee into a holding company called
> Enexus.
> Entergy has proposed spinning off six of its oldest nuclear reactors
> into
> Enexus to raise $3.5 billion to pay off outstanding debt and to reward
> stockholders.
>
> Manwaring said she doesn't see how any guarantees that Entergy
> makes
> can assure the financial integrity of Enexus.
>
> The only asset Enexus will have is the "six aging nuclear
> plants," she
> said.
>
> "I fear that will leave a huge burden on the taxpayers," said
> Manwaring.
>
> "Decision makers are looking at (Enexus) and are less confident
> in
> what Entergy is trying to do," said Rep. Virginia Milkey, D-
> Brattleboro.
>
> Even those in favor of Yankee's continued operation, the Enexus
> spin
> off is of major concern.
>
> "I'm not comfortable with that yet," said Rep. Richard Hube,
> R-Londonderry. "You've got to have the resources and the capability to
> fulfill your part of the contract."
>
> Rep. John Moran, D-Wardsboro, said that though he hasn't made
> up his
> mind about his vote, he worries that Enexus won't be up to the job of
> keeping the plant running smoothly.
>
> "I am very concerned about spinning it off into a heavily
> leveraged
> debt-ridden corporation," he said. "It may not be able to meet its
> financial
> responsibility. I don't want it to be the FairPoint of Vermont."
>
> Even though she supports Yankee's continued operation, Rep. Patty
> O'Donnell, R-Vernon, said a purchase price agreement has to be
> ironed out
> prior to the vote. She is also concerned about the decommissioning
> fund, she
> said, though she doesn't believe Entergy has to make sure the fund
> is whole
> by 2012.
>
> "There has to be some plan to have that fund full at the end of
> its
> license," said O'Donnell. "I want to see the plan for it."
>
> Other legislators are also concerned about the costs of
> cleaning up
> the site, whether the plant closes in 2012 or 2032.
>
> Making the decommissioning fund whole "Is almost certainly
> going to be
> part of the relicensing vote," said Rep. Richard Marek, D-Newfane.
>
> Twice the Legislature has passed bills requiring Entergy to
> make the
> decommissioning fund whole by 2012 and twice Gov. James Douglas has
> vetoed
> those bills.
>
> But the Legislature might have the upper hand come 2010, he said.
>
> The authorization for continued operation comes in the form of a
> resolution and not a bill which the governor can again veto. This
> means the
> Legislature can insert a condition into the resolution demanding
> full-funding of the decommissioning fund for continued operation to
> move
> forward.
>
> The Legislature doesn't even have to pass a resolution, said
> Marek.
>
> "If the Legislature does nothing, relicensing doesn't occur. The
> Legislature has absolute power to deny relicensing."
>
> But Marek said his mind is pretty much made up about Yankee's
> future.
>
> "I don't believe the plant should be relicensed," he said.
> "It's at
> the end of its planned life and its history in recent years has raised
> additional concerns."
>
> Other legislators have also made up their minds about their
> decision.
>
> Milkey said she has been against continued operation since
> 1990. Even
> if Entergy meets all of the conditions outlined above, she will
> still vote
> against it, she said.
>
> "It's a dangerous technology," said Milkey.
>
> "They have a license that goes to 2012," said Rep. David Deen,
> D-Westminster. "At that point they should close. I have been
> consistent
> since 1986. That's how I'm going to vote."
>
> Senate President Pro Tem Peter Shumlin, D-Windham, has been a
> constant
> critic of how Entergy manages the plant. Just the same, he said, he
> will
> reserve judgment on continued operation until all the cows have come
> home.
>
> "It's not fair to make a final decision until we have all the
> facts,"
> he said, adding "I'm extremely skeptical about Entergy Louisiana's
> future in
> Vermont."
>
> He is also concerned about how Entergy plans to safely store
> nuclear
> waste in Vermont for the long term. The federal government had
> promised to
> assume ownership of the spent fuel and remove it to a depository,
> which has
> not panned out.
>
> "The federal government broke its promise," he said. "Now it's
> our
> problem."
>
> A purchase price agreement and the full funding of the
> decommissioning
> fund are non-negotiable, he said. Without a purchase agreement and
> resolution of the decommissioning fund and the spent fuel issues, said
> Shumlin, "I can assure you there will be no vote on Vermont Yankee."
>
> "We're still talking," said Steve Costello, spokesman for Central
> Vermont Public Service, which hasn't taken a position on whether the
> plant
> should be allowed to continue operation past 2012.
>
> Just the same, he said, "I wouldn't bet on the Legislature
> approving
> continued operation without real value in a purchase agreement."
>
> Green Mountain Power has maintained that if Entergy meets all the
> state and federal requirements, from cost perspective and the
> state's carbon
> footprint, continued operation is in Vermont's best interests, said
> Dottie
> Schnure, spokeswoman for Green Mountain Power.
>
> But without a purchase price agreement, it's hard to see how
> continued
> operation would benefit the state's ratepayers.
>
> The utilities now have a revenue-sharing agreement in place for
> the
> first 10 years following the authorization to continue operation, said
> Schnure.
>
> "If electric prices go very high that revenue-sharing agreement
> is
> worth millions of dollars," she said.
>
> The revenue-sharing agreement guarantees money to the utilities
> anytime the price of electricity on the open market exceeds 6.1
> cents per
> kilowatt hour.
>
> In July, that price hit a low of 3.3 cents, but the average for
> 2007
> and 2008 was 7.5 cents. The highest it has been in the last two
> years was
> 11.3 cents.
>
> Bob Audette can be reached at [email protected], or at
> 802-254-2311, ext. 273.