Energy Diversity at Heart of Duke's Plan for North Carolina

In today's edition of the News and Observer, Duke Energy Chairman, President and CEO Jim Rogers lays out the rationale for his company's long-term plan to provide reliable, affordable and environmentally responsible energy to North Carolina.

Though Rogers may be talking about one state, the following three paragraphs could easily be applied to any region of the country:

Some people who oppose our plan do so out of a belief that renewable energy and energy efficiency alone can address our energy challenge, but that is wishful thinking. Having a duty to provide electricity to a growing customer base of 2.2 million, we do not have the luxury of detaching ourselves from reality. Instead we must meet our customers' growing demand for power with real electrons that customers can depend on.

Our duty is to provide reliable, affordable electricity to support a growing population. By 2030, North Carolina's population is predicted to grow from 8 million people to 12 million -- a 50 percent increase from 2000, bringing more homes, hospitals, schools and businesses in need of electricity. Increased demand is also driven by the growing appetite for computers, plasma TVs and other devices.

We stand at a crossroad. Business and government leaders must address this challenge in a way that says "North Carolina is open for business" -- and in an environmentally responsible way. Our plan does that. It assures adequate, reliable and affordable electricity to support economic growth. And it begins reducing the environmental impact of generation by retiring older and high-emitting coal plants and investing heavily in energy efficiency.

Comments

Wednesday Update

From NEI’s Japan micro-site: NRC, Industry Concur on Many Post-Fukushima Actions Industry/Regulatory/Political Issues • There is a “great deal of alignment” between the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission and the industry on initial steps to take at America’s nuclear energy facilities in response to the nuclear accident in Japan, Charles Pardee, the chief operating officer of Exelon Generation Co., said at an agency briefing today. The briefing gave stakeholders an opportunity to discuss staff recommendations for near-term actions the agency may take at U.S. facilities. PowerPoint slides from the meeting are on the NRC website. • The International Atomic Energy Agency board has approved a plan that calls for inspectors to evaluate reactor safety at nuclear energy facilities every three years. Governments may opt out of having their country’s facilities inspected. Also approved were plans to maintain a rapid response team of experts ready to assist facility operators recoverin...

Fluor Invests in NuScale

You know, it’s kind of sad that no one is willing to invest in nuclear energy anymore. Wait, what? NuScale Power celebrated the news of its company-saving $30 million investment from Fluor Corp. Thursday morning with a press conference in Washington, D.C. Fluor is a design, engineering and construction company involved with some 20 plants in the 70s and 80s, but it has not held interest in a nuclear energy company until now. Fluor, which has deep roots in the nuclear industry, is betting big on small-scale nuclear energy with its NuScale investment. "It's become a serious contender in the last decade or so," John Hopkins, [Fluor’s group president in charge of new ventures], said. And that brings us to NuScale, which had run into some dark days – maybe not as dark as, say, Solyndra, but dire enough : Earlier this year, the Securities Exchange Commission filed an action against NuScale's lead investor, The Michael Kenwood Group. The firm "misap...

Activists' Claims Distort Facts about Advanced Reactor Design

Below is from our rapid response team . Yesterday, regional anti-nuclear organizations asked federal nuclear energy regulators to launch an investigation into what it claims are “newly identified flaws” in Westinghouse’s advanced reactor design, the AP1000. During a teleconference releasing a report on the subject, participants urged the Nuclear Regulatory Commission to suspend license reviews of proposed AP1000 reactors. In its news release, even the groups making these allegations provide conflicting information on its findings. In one instance, the groups cite “dozens of corrosion holes” at reactor vessels and in another says that eight holes have been documented. In all cases, there is another containment mechanism that would provide a barrier to radiation release. Below, we examine why these claims are unwarranted and why the AP1000 design certification process should continue as designated by the NRC. Myth: In the AP1000 reactor design, the gap between the shield bu...

NEI Nuclear Notes

Search This Blog