Exelon defended a controversial piece of energy legislation proposed in Illinois this week, after state Attorney General Lisa Madigan blasted it as an unnecessary bailout for profitable companies.
Exelon announced earlier this month that it would close two of its Illinois nuclear power plants, the Quad Cities Generating Station and the Clinton Power Station, if the state does not approve the Next Generation Energy Plan by May 31, when the spring legislative session wraps up. The company, citing economic hardship, has threatened closure for several years, recently setting shut down dates for Clinton in June 2017 and Quad Cities in June 2018.
Madigan said in a statement Tuesday that the plan, Senate Bill 1585, would generate billions of dollars for Exelon and its subsidiary ComEd in spending and profit paid for by consumers.
“It’s outrageous that Exelon and ComEd are again requesting a bailout when they are both profitable companies. This proposal would force consumers to pay more only to boost the companies’ profits further. The legislature has more important matters to address than padding ComEd and Exelon’s profits,” Madigan said in a statement.
The legislation is modeled after New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo’s Clean Energy Standard, which so far has not convinced Entergy to maintain operation at its James A. FitzPatrick, a facility set to shut down in January 2017, saving the company an estimated $275 million through 2020. The plan provides tax benefits for nuclear plants, mandating that 50 percent of all electricity consumed in New York originate from clean and renewable energy sources by 2030.
About 600 people traveled to Springfield, Ill., Tuesday to support continued operation of the Quad Cities. Exelon spokesman Neal Miller told RadWaste Monitor on Monday that the state’s initiative will allow the Exelon plants, which have lost an estimated $800 million in the past six years, to remain open.
“The nuclear plants are the only zero-carbon resource excluded under Illinois legislation. If that does not change, then plants will close,” Miller wrote in a statement Wednesday. “Retiring Clinton and Quad Cities would result in the loss of jobs and economic activity, higher energy prices for consumers, and a dramatic increase in carbon emissions that will make it harder and more expensive for Illinois to meet its clean energy goals.”
Exelon said the plan would allow Illinois to save 4,200 direct and secondary jobs and nearly $1.2 billion in economic activity, including customer savings on energy rates and carbon-free benefits. The legislation would implement a zero emission standard, recognizing nuclear power as a zero-carbon source.
Among other benefits Miller listed for the energy plan is the nearly doubling of energy efficiency programs, including $1 billion in funding for low-income assistance, and $140 million per year in new funding for solar development.
Miller declined to provide an exact amount that Exelon is seeking in order to keep the plants afloat, saying that “the exact benefit to Exelon is highly dependent on market conditions.”
Quad Cities Fails to Pass PJM Auction
The Quad Cities Generating Station failed to clear the regional grid operator’s capacity auction on Thursday, meaning the plant will not receive any capacity revenue for the 2019-20 planning year.
Grid operator PJM holds the auction annually, allowing members to purchase power supply from various energy sources. This ensures the region, which includes 13 states and the District of Columbia, has enough power supply moving forward, why also sending signals on demand.
“The capacity market alone can’t preserve zero-carbon emitting nuclear plants that are facing the lowest wholesale energy prices in 15 years,” Exelon President and CEO Chris Crane said in a statement, reiterating that Quad Cities and Clinton will close without passage of comprehensive energy legislation.
