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Department of Energy Praises the Nuclear Regulatory Commission

The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) of energy today commended the Nuclear Regulatory Commission's decision to approve the first-ever Early Site Permit (ESP) for the Exelon Generation Company's Clinton site, in central Illinois. This decision marks a major milestone in the President's plan to expand the use of safe and clean nuclear power. As part of President Bush's Advanced Energy Initiative - which seeks to change the way we power this nation - nuclear power will play an increasingly important role as the demand for electricity grows worldwide.

"Government's role is to create an environment in which clean energy can flourish, and I'm proud to say that we're helping doing just that. NRC approval of the Clinton Early Site Permit represents a major accomplishment in this Administration's effort to address the barriers and stimulate deployment of new nuclear power plants in the United States," Secretary of Energy Samuel W. Bodman said. "By demonstrating effectiveness and predictability in the licensing process, utilities will have the information they need to make sound business decisions that can lead to the construction of new nuclear power plants."

This ESP approval culminates a four-year, cost-shared project with DOE and the Chicago-based Exelon Corporation, aimed at demonstrating the new and previously untested licensing process for locating new nuclear plants in the United States.

Exelon submitted their ESP application, which includes a Site Safety Analysis Report, an Environmental Report, and an Emergency Plan to the NRC in September 2003. The NRC issued the Final Safety Evaluation Report in May 2006, the Final Environmental Impact Statement in July 2006, and the Atomic Safety and Licensing Board (ASLB) hearings concluded in early November 2006.

DOE has partnered with Exelon and two other companies, Entergy and Dominion Energy, since September 2002 to demonstrate the ESP process. This process was established by NRC in 1989 for utilities to complete the site and environmental evaluations before a decision is made to build a nuclear plant. Once issued, the ESP is valid for 20 years and can be used in conjunction with a subsequent combined Construction and Operating License application. A decision on the Entergy Grand Gulf ESP is expected within the month and later this year on Dominion's North Anna ESP.

Today's vote also supports DOE's Nuclear Power 2010 (NP 2010) program, a joint government/industry cost-shared effort to identify sites for new nuclear power plants; develop and bring to market advanced nuclear plant technologies; evaluate the business case for building new nuclear power plants and; demonstrate untested regulatory processes.

President Bush's Fiscal Year (FY) 2008 budget requests $874.2M ($241M, 38.2% increase over the FY'07 request) for DOE's Office of Nuclear Energy. $114 million of that request ($60 million, 111% increase over the FY 2007 request) has been allocated for NP2010 to complete the remaining ESP demonstration projects and continue the New Nuclear Plant Licensing Demonstration projects. This funding will allow continued reactor designs and; implement further successful licensing interactions with industry to build new nuclear plants by 2009.

For more information on NP 2010, visit: np2010.ne.doe.gov/.

Source: U.S. Department of Energy

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