The Department of Energy has released its fourth loan reimbursement to Holtec for about $100 million to support efforts to restart the Palisades nuclear plant in Michigan.
Secretary of Energy Chris Wright made the announcement this past Friday, saying that the efforts to restart the Palisades plant further align with one of President Donald Trump’s May 23 executive orders, Reinvigorating the Nuclear Industrial Base, according to the June 20 press release.
This is the fourth installment of DOE’s $1.52 billion loan guarantee for the 800-megawatt Michigan nuclear plant. Over the past six months, Palisades has received three other loan installments, with April’s loan, the third installment, being worth $46.7 million.
The loan guarantee from DOE’s Loan Programs Office was announced in September 2024.
According to the DOE, the department has distributed up to $251.8 million through loan funds to Holtec’s Palisades restart efforts, including the Nuclear Regulatory Commission issuance of the final environmental assessment and finding no significant impact.
Last month, NRC issued the final environmental assessments for the Palisades restart on the Federal Register and found no big impact from it.
The Palisades nuclear plant was previously operated by Entergy and shut down in 2022. Holtec bought the plant from Entergy with the intention of decommissioning it but has since changed its plans.
Contingent on NRC approvals, Palisades could become the first American commercial nuclear plant to restart its operations, DOE said. According to the NRC website, the Palisades licensing actions could be completed by late September.
