California state lawmakers introduced a bill over the weekend that, if made law, would toss a billion-dollar lifeline to the state’s last operating nuclear power plant.
The proposed legislation, unveiled Sunday only days before the scheduled end of the state’s legislative session, would nullify a 2018 order from the California Public Utilities Commission approving shutdown plans for Diablo Canyon Power Plant. If it became law, the measure would require the commission to “set new retirement dates for the Diablo Canyon powerplant.”
The bill would also authorize the state’s Department of Water Resources to loan plant operator Pacific Gas & Electric (PG&E) up to $1.4 billion to “facilitate the extension” of operations at Diablo Canyon. PG&E currently plans to shut the plant’s two reactors down in 2024 and 2025, respectively.
To avoid closure, PG&E would have to apply with the Nuclear Regulatory Commission to extend the site’s operating license. Under the proposed bill, PG&E would have 180 days, or around six months, to submit such a request to NRC.
It wouldn’t be the first time the utility has asked for a license extension for Diablo Canyon — PG&E applied for one in 2009, but withdrew it after it decided in 2018 to shutter the plant. The review process for a new extension request could last beyond the facility’s scheduled shutdown date.
The proposed bill is similar to a plan unveiled Aug. 11 by California Gov. Gavin Newsom (D). A spokesperson for the governor’s office did not immediately return a request for comment.
The state legislature won’t have long to get the measure onto Newsom’s desk. Aug. 31 is the last day of the legislative session, and lawmakers won’t meet again in Sacramento until January.
Meanwhile, PG&E has said that it would apply for additional funding for Diablo Canyon as part of the Department of Energy’s roughly $6 billion civil nuclear credits program.
The utility would use a DOE bailout to “reduce costs for our customers should there be a change in state policy extending operations at the plant,” a spokesperson told Exchange Monitor in July. Applications for the program are due Sep. 6.
