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Written by John Egan for Industrial Info Resources (Sugar Land, Texas)--The recent decision to terminate construction of two new units at the V.C. Summer Nuclear Power Station in South Carolina claimed two other victims in late August. Duke Energy Corporation (NYSE:DUK) (Charlotte, North Carolina) informed its North Carolina regulators it intends to cancel plans to build the two-unit William States Lee III Nuclear Station in Gaffney, South Carolina. And the head of Santee Cooper (Moncks Corner, South Carolina) announced he was retiring after 35 years with the public-power utility. Santee Cooper is the 45% owner of the now-cancelled unit additions at the Virgil C. Summer Nuclear Power Station in Jenkinsville, South Carolina.
In an August 25 statement, Duke Energy said it was seeking approval from the North Carolina Utilities Commission (NCUC) (Charlotte, North Carolina) to cancel the development of the Lee nuclear project. It said the recent bankruptcy of Westinghouse Electric Company (Cranberry Township, Pennsylvania), a subsidiary of Toshiba Corporation, and other market activity, forced its hand. The Lee project was scheduled to install two Westinghouse AP1000 reactors, the same equipment being installed at the Vogtle facility. The cancelled Summer unit additions also were using the AP1000 reactor. For more on the Summer cancellation, see August 1, 2017, article - Utilities Abandon Construction of Summer Nuclear Plant in South Carolina.
Duke said the "risks and uncertainties to initiating construction on the Lee Nuclear project have become too great, and cancellation of the project is the best option for customers." The utility said it would maintain the license to build new nuclear at this site if, in the future, that was in the best interest of customers. It received the combined construction and operating license (COL) from the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) (Bethesda, Maryland) in December 2016.
Cancelling construction of the Lee unit additions, plus other investments the utility has made in recent years, caused Duke to ask North Carolina regulators to increase electric prices by about $647 million, which amounts to about 13.6% across all customer groups. The rate case seeks recovery of outlays to build several large gas-fired power plants in recent years, as well as a number of renewable energy projects, mainly solar power and hydropower. The rate case also seeks to recover outlays made to install advanced digital meters and smart grid technology, as well as efforts to harden its electric grid and close several coal-ash storage facilities.
In an August 25 filing with the North Carolina Utilities Commission, Duke said it has spent about $542 million in total project development costs on the Lee project through June 30, 2017. Recovery of a portion of those expenses is part of the August 25 rate filing.
Elsewhere on the nuclear energy front: Dominion Energy Incorporated (NYSE:D) (Richmond, Virginia) has still not decided whether it wants to build the North Anna Unit 3 nuclear project. That project remains under development, though the company has made no decision on whether it would move forward with that project, Richard Zuercher, Dominion's manager of nuclear fleet communications, said in an interview.
"We received our combined construction and operating license (COL) from the NRC this summer, but we have made no decision to build North Anna 3," he told Industrial Info. "If we did decide to build it, it would not come online until the late 2020s, at the earliest." He said market conditions, including the price of natural gas, continued declines in the cost of renewables, electric load growth and federal regulations on carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions, were among the factors that would affect a decision on North Anna 3. The utility has not sought approval from Virginia utility regulators to build the new unit. Before construction can begin, the utility needs approval from its state regulators.
In an August 2 article, the Associated Press quoted another Dominion official, Mark Webb, a senior vice president, as saying this about North Anna 3: "the economics at this time don't support moving forward."
If Dominion builds North Anna 3, it would install a GE-Hitachi Economic Simplified Boiling Water Reactor (ESBWR), Zuercher said, adding it would be the first deployment of that reactor technology. The spokesman said Dominion has not released a budget to build North Anna 3. Industrial Info's North American Project Platform shows the project has a total investment value (TIV) of about $19 billion.
Dominion has been collecting funds for pre-construction activities associated with North Anna Unit 3. Critics have asked the state's utility regulatory body to order Dominion to either commit to building the plant or abandon it and refund customers. Late last year, Dominion was unwilling to say definitively whether it planned to move ahead with the project. For more on that, see November 30, 2016, article - Virginia Utility Stays Mum on Building North Anna Unit 3.
The Chapter 11 bankruptcy filing by Westinghouse Electric Company LLC, coupled with dramatic cost overruns and delayed in-service dates for units 3 and 4 at the Alvin W. Vogtle Nuclear Power Station in Waynesboro, Georgia, and the abandonment of units 2 and 3 at the V.C. Summer Nuclear Power Station in South Carolina, have roiled the Power Industry.
Lonnie Carter, chief executive officer of Santee Cooper since 2004, announced his resignation August 25 after 35 years with the public utility. Santee Cooper and South Carolina Electric & Gas Company (SCE&G) (Cayce, South Carolina), a unit of SCANA Corporation (NYSE:SCG) (Cayce), together reportedly invested nearly $10 billion in building Summer units 2 and 3, which would have added about 2,234 MW of new generating capacity. Construction was abandoned July 31.
Carter sent a letter to potential buyers of the partially completed Summer units, but in late August said two of the offers were not financially viable. Carter said neither of the parties that made an offer has the assets to undertake the massive and expensive project. Santee Cooper, the 45% owner of the two partially completed nuclear units, set a September 15 deadline for potential buyers to express their interest.
Additionally, South Carolina Governor Henry McMaster has initiated his own search for a buyer, reportedly reaching out to officials at Duke Energy, Dominion Energy and Southern Power. South Carolina officials said they plan to investigate the utilities' decision to abandon construction of the two nuclear units.
Industrial Info Resources (IIR), with global headquarters in Sugar Land, Texas, six offices in North America and 12 international offices, is the leading provider of global market intelligence specializing in the industrial process, heavy manufacturing and energy markets. Industrial Info's quality-assurance philosophy, the Living Forward Reporting Principle, provides up-to-the-minute intelligence on what's happening now, while constantly keeping track of future opportunities. Follow IIR on: Facebook - Twitter - LinkedIn. For more information on our coverage, send inquiries to info@industrialinfo.com or visit us online at http://www.industrialinfo.com.
In an August 25 statement, Duke Energy said it was seeking approval from the North Carolina Utilities Commission (NCUC) (Charlotte, North Carolina) to cancel the development of the Lee nuclear project. It said the recent bankruptcy of Westinghouse Electric Company (Cranberry Township, Pennsylvania), a subsidiary of Toshiba Corporation, and other market activity, forced its hand. The Lee project was scheduled to install two Westinghouse AP1000 reactors, the same equipment being installed at the Vogtle facility. The cancelled Summer unit additions also were using the AP1000 reactor. For more on the Summer cancellation, see August 1, 2017, article - Utilities Abandon Construction of Summer Nuclear Plant in South Carolina.
Duke said the "risks and uncertainties to initiating construction on the Lee Nuclear project have become too great, and cancellation of the project is the best option for customers." The utility said it would maintain the license to build new nuclear at this site if, in the future, that was in the best interest of customers. It received the combined construction and operating license (COL) from the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) (Bethesda, Maryland) in December 2016.
Cancelling construction of the Lee unit additions, plus other investments the utility has made in recent years, caused Duke to ask North Carolina regulators to increase electric prices by about $647 million, which amounts to about 13.6% across all customer groups. The rate case seeks recovery of outlays to build several large gas-fired power plants in recent years, as well as a number of renewable energy projects, mainly solar power and hydropower. The rate case also seeks to recover outlays made to install advanced digital meters and smart grid technology, as well as efforts to harden its electric grid and close several coal-ash storage facilities.
In an August 25 filing with the North Carolina Utilities Commission, Duke said it has spent about $542 million in total project development costs on the Lee project through June 30, 2017. Recovery of a portion of those expenses is part of the August 25 rate filing.
Elsewhere on the nuclear energy front: Dominion Energy Incorporated (NYSE:D) (Richmond, Virginia) has still not decided whether it wants to build the North Anna Unit 3 nuclear project. That project remains under development, though the company has made no decision on whether it would move forward with that project, Richard Zuercher, Dominion's manager of nuclear fleet communications, said in an interview.
"We received our combined construction and operating license (COL) from the NRC this summer, but we have made no decision to build North Anna 3," he told Industrial Info. "If we did decide to build it, it would not come online until the late 2020s, at the earliest." He said market conditions, including the price of natural gas, continued declines in the cost of renewables, electric load growth and federal regulations on carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions, were among the factors that would affect a decision on North Anna 3. The utility has not sought approval from Virginia utility regulators to build the new unit. Before construction can begin, the utility needs approval from its state regulators.
In an August 2 article, the Associated Press quoted another Dominion official, Mark Webb, a senior vice president, as saying this about North Anna 3: "the economics at this time don't support moving forward."
If Dominion builds North Anna 3, it would install a GE-Hitachi Economic Simplified Boiling Water Reactor (ESBWR), Zuercher said, adding it would be the first deployment of that reactor technology. The spokesman said Dominion has not released a budget to build North Anna 3. Industrial Info's North American Project Platform shows the project has a total investment value (TIV) of about $19 billion.
Dominion has been collecting funds for pre-construction activities associated with North Anna Unit 3. Critics have asked the state's utility regulatory body to order Dominion to either commit to building the plant or abandon it and refund customers. Late last year, Dominion was unwilling to say definitively whether it planned to move ahead with the project. For more on that, see November 30, 2016, article - Virginia Utility Stays Mum on Building North Anna Unit 3.
The Chapter 11 bankruptcy filing by Westinghouse Electric Company LLC, coupled with dramatic cost overruns and delayed in-service dates for units 3 and 4 at the Alvin W. Vogtle Nuclear Power Station in Waynesboro, Georgia, and the abandonment of units 2 and 3 at the V.C. Summer Nuclear Power Station in South Carolina, have roiled the Power Industry.
Lonnie Carter, chief executive officer of Santee Cooper since 2004, announced his resignation August 25 after 35 years with the public utility. Santee Cooper and South Carolina Electric & Gas Company (SCE&G) (Cayce, South Carolina), a unit of SCANA Corporation (NYSE:SCG) (Cayce), together reportedly invested nearly $10 billion in building Summer units 2 and 3, which would have added about 2,234 MW of new generating capacity. Construction was abandoned July 31.
Carter sent a letter to potential buyers of the partially completed Summer units, but in late August said two of the offers were not financially viable. Carter said neither of the parties that made an offer has the assets to undertake the massive and expensive project. Santee Cooper, the 45% owner of the two partially completed nuclear units, set a September 15 deadline for potential buyers to express their interest.
Additionally, South Carolina Governor Henry McMaster has initiated his own search for a buyer, reportedly reaching out to officials at Duke Energy, Dominion Energy and Southern Power. South Carolina officials said they plan to investigate the utilities' decision to abandon construction of the two nuclear units.
Industrial Info Resources (IIR), with global headquarters in Sugar Land, Texas, six offices in North America and 12 international offices, is the leading provider of global market intelligence specializing in the industrial process, heavy manufacturing and energy markets. Industrial Info's quality-assurance philosophy, the Living Forward Reporting Principle, provides up-to-the-minute intelligence on what's happening now, while constantly keeping track of future opportunities. Follow IIR on: Facebook - Twitter - LinkedIn. For more information on our coverage, send inquiries to info@industrialinfo.com or visit us online at http://www.industrialinfo.com.
