The president of the company that has been decommissioning the Indian Point nuclear power facility in Buchanan says it would be possible to restart the plant to help ensure there is an adequate future supply of electricity for the New York Metro area.
Kelly Trice, president of Holtec International, was quoted by the publication Politico as saying that restarting Indian Point is technically possible. Holtec now owns the plant and has been decommissioning it. Trice said that a decision to restart the Indian Point reactors would need to be made within the next 12 to 24 months before the decommissioning gets too far along. The cost would be from $8 billion to $10 billion.
Trice discussing the possibility of an Indian Pont reboot comes against the background of President Trump disparaging wind and solar power and praising nuclear. Earlier this year Republicans in the New York State Senate introduced legislation to establish a commission on reopening the Indian Point Energy Center. The commission would have 13 members. The legislation has been bottled up in committee.
With Holtec’s president having said that an Indian Point reboot would be possible, Westchester County Executive Ken Jenkins on Sept. 16 asked the County Board of Legislators adopt an act declaring the county’s strong opposition to the reopening of the nuclear plant.
“Opening this plant again is a hard ‘no.'” Jenkins said. “New York state has access to low-cost, environmentally conscious energy alternatives including solar, wind, geothermal and hydropower – we don’t need or want Indian Point back.”
Jenkins noted that Gov. Kathy Hochul has advocated building nuclear generating facilities in upstate New York. Hochul directed the New York Power Authority (NYPA) to develop and construct a zero-emission advanced nuclear power plant upstate. She called for at least one new nuclear energy facility with a capacity of no less than one gigawatt of electricity, built either by NYPA alone or in partnership with private entities.
“The health and safety of millions of residents in the Hudson Valley is worth more than any power plant. That is why I support Governor Kathy Hochul’s initiative that supports nuclear power plants in New York, but excludes New York City, Long Island and the Hudson Valley in that plan,” Jenkins said. “Even years after its (Indian Point’s) closure, inspections have identified radiological substances in the Hudson River and cesium isotopes in surface soil, highlighting the ongoing environmental hazards of this site. We have been through this once and we still are feeling the impacts, and we are not doing it again. We absolutely do not support reactivating a facility that continues to pose a threat to our community and our environment.”
Jenkins noted that under the terms of the 2021 Joint Proposal on Indian Point’s decommissioning, Holtec agreed not to propose the siting of new nuclear reactors at the Indian Point site without the explicit support of local government entities, including Westchester County, and the state.
Politico quoted Trice as saying that the containment and turbine buildings along with the electrical switch gear and components at Indian Point are intact making a restart conceivable.
