BRATTLEBORO -- Two men with diametrically opposing views on the continued operation of Vermont Yankee nuclear power plant faced off on Vermont Public Radio’s "Vermont Edition" on Friday.
In Yankee’s corner stood Jay Thayer, a vice president at Entergy, which owns and operates the power plant in Vernon.
In the other corner stood Senate President Pro Tem Peter Shumlin, D-Windham.
The referee was host and longtime Statehouse reporter Bob Kinzel.
Entergy has applied to the Nuclear Regulatory Commission to extend Yankee’s operating license from 2012 to 2032. In addition to NRC approval, Entergy must also receive the OK from the Vermont Legislature and the Public Service Board.
Entergy is also requesting approval to spin off Yankee and five other nuclear reactors into a new independent company named Enexus. The PSB must also approve the spin-off.
Kinzel asked Thayer why no power purchase agreement has yet been reached between Entergy and the state’s utilities.
Thayer said that’s because there is too much uncertainty about electric prices at this time.
"Electric rates are all over the place," he said. "Mostly down."
Because of price fluctuations and the uncertainties due to the economic recession, said Thayer, it’s hard to forecast the price of electricity in order to develop a contract with state utilities.
"This is one of the most difficult chores I have been involved with," said
If no contract is reached by Dec. 18, he said, Entergy will pass on a standard offer to the Public Service Board for its deliberations.
This will contain the information needed for both the PSB and the Legislature to "take a look a the economics of Vermont Yankee in the long term," said Thayer.
Thayer said "one way or the other" he would like to see the Legislature vote this session, even if just for the sake of the 650 employees at the plant.
Kinzel asked Thayer to confirm that Entergy won’t take the state to court if it refuses to allow the plant to continue operating past 2012.
"That’s what I’m saying," replied Thayer.
Shumlin and House Speaker Shap Smith, D-Morristown, announced earlier this fall that if no purchase agreement was reached by Nov. 1 it would be hard for the Legislature to vote during its 2010 session on whether Yankee should be allowed to continue operating past 2012.
"It’s going to be very difficult," said Shumlin.
If Vermont Yankee can supply cheap power, which Entergy claims is one of the main assets of the plant, Shumlin said, "Why won’t they tell us what the price would be?"
Thayer said Entergy will continue to work with the state to meet all its demands and to address all its concerns.
"The answers are in front of us now," said Thayer. "The studies have been done, the results are in, the plant has been shown to be reliable."
The Legislature has to look at four areas before making its decision, said Shumlin.
Those are the reliability of the plant, the status of its decommissioning fund, whether a purchase agreement has been reached and whether Entergy will be allowed to spin off Yankee into Enexus.
Shumlin said trading Entergy, which is a very profitable company, with Enexus, a highly leveraged company, with its only assets being an aging fleet of nuclear power plants, is not such a good idea for the state.
"Time and time again we’ve watched as Wall Street and the stockholders make out while Main Street is left holding the bag," said Shumlin. "If Entergy spins off Enexus, we want to have the guarantee that if this new entity, with huge amounts of debt, gets into financial trouble, Entergy will be on the hook."
Thayer said the formation of Enexus has already been approved by federal regulators and is only awaiting a decision from the states of New York and Vermont.
He said the spin-off is a "very good, very strong financial move."
Thayer said the six nuclear reactors in the proposed spin-off are "very valuable assets (worth) somewhere in excess of $10 billion."
Being $3.5 billion in debt is not a highly leveraged position, said Thayer. In fact, it’s like buying a $100,000 house while only needing a $35,000 mortgage, he said.
Shumlin was not convinced.
"Anything can go wrong with one of those plants," he said, putting the financial viability of Enexus into jeopardy.
Thayer responded by saying that the NRC spent nearly four years inspecting Yankee. The NRC concluded there were no significant safety or environmental reasons that would prevent it from issuing a renewal. In addition, he said, a study commissioned by the state concluded Yankee was being operated reliably and could be operated reliably for another 20 years.
Starting when Entergy bought the plant in 2002, said Thayer, it has invested $300 million into the plant.
If it is allowed to continue operation, it will invest hundreds of millions of dollars more in the power plant, he said, to make sure it is reliable and safe "right up to the last day it operates."
But an aging nuclear power plant is not the answer to Vermont’s long-term energy needs, said Shumlin, even if it receives permission to operate until 2032.
"It’s a short-term solution under any energy scenario," he said.
Now is the time to get serious about building up renewable energy sources in Vermont, said Shumlin.
While renewables are expensive today -- between 15 and 30 cents per kilowatt hour -- costs are bound to go down as the technologies improve, said Shumlin.
Vermont can be part of an "extraordinary economic boom" if it gets moving on renewable energy today, he said.
Bob Audette can be reached at raudette@reformer.com, or at 802-254-2311, ext. 273.
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