NEI Nuclear Notes

A lot of the posts over at the National Journal’s energy blog have been about Solyndra – as one might expect – but the loan guarantee aspect of the story has a nuclear energy angle. NEI President and CEO Marv Fertel explains (about a quarter of the way down the page): Loan guarantees are one of the most effective tools available to the federal government, and are widely used by the federal government to support financing of projects that have substantial public value. The federal government manages a successful loan guarantee portfolio of approximately $1.2 trillion which, on balance, returns more to the Treasury than it costs the taxpayer. Loan guarantees cost the taxpayers money when a company defaults. That’s collateral damage from the the Solyndra collapse, because the company had received one - with a good deal of fanfare. Why offer loan guarantee at all? Well, they lower the cost of a loan, making it more plausible for a company to risk the considerable cash needed to ...

When we say that new nuclear plants are engines of job creation, we don’t just mean the new jobs created to construct and run the plants, but all the jobs that can grow up around it. Here’s an example : Siemens Energy Inc. plans to hire more than 200 engineers in Charlotte – the latest step toward turning the region into an energy hub, state and local leaders said Thursday. During a news conference at the Charlotte Chamber, Siemens officials said they'll add 226 jobs over the next five years, with an average annual salary of about $49,100 this year and $66,500 by 2013, plus benefits. Nice in itself, nicer even when you consider: Last month, a nuclear power unit of electronics giant Toshiba announced the addition of nearly 200 workers, averaging six-figure salaries, to staff a national project management and engineering center opening in August. More than 30 new nuclear reactors are proposed nationwide, including six in the Carolinas. Hmmm. So it makes a little ...

Details from EarthTimes .