NEI CEO Marv Fertel on the Closing of Palisades Power Plant

Marv Fertel

The following statement is from NEI President and CEO Marv Fertel concerning the closing of Palisades Power Plant.

"Palisades has been churning out emissions-free electricity since the end of 1971. It provides 600 people with well-paid, year-round jobs, and it is the largest taxpayer in Van Buren County, in southwestern Michigan. It helps stabilize the grid, and provides a vital hedge against severe weather (like most of the U.S. is experiencing now) or other events with a potential to interrupt fuel supplies."

"But the market does not value the plant for providing any of those benefits. Nuclear plants are operated by corporations, with an eye on the bottom line. What is not paid for does not endure. Governor Rick Snyder called it 'a major employer and economic engine for the region.' We hope that some other source of employment will follow on that spot, on the sand dunes of Lake Michigan, and that it will be as quiet, safe and clean."

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