Latest news with #HoltecInternational
The National
a day ago
- Business
- The National
'Zombie reactor': Demand from AI gives new life to Great Lakes nuclear plant
Increased energy demands from data centres largely caused by an artificial intelligence boom have given new life to one of the oldest decommissioned US nuclear reactors: Palisades in Covert on Lake Michigan. The project to bring the Palisades nuclear plant back online after being decommissioned in 2022 has the support of Democratic Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitmer, who has insisted that it is necessary to meet a spike in energy demand along with the state's goals of reducing fossil fuel emissions. A recent announcement from the US Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) also bodes well for the decommissioned reactor, now owned by Holtec International. The NRC gave Holtec the green light to transition Palisades from its current status as decommissioned, to eventually being classified as operationally licensed. Yet even by nuclear energy standards, the Palisades plant was dogged by criticism in the decade before it was decommissioned. An NRC report warned about the work culture at Palisades, where safety concerns were often ignored. In 2016, security workers at the reactor were placed on leave from the plant, then owned by Entergy, for failing to properly follow fire prevention protocols. But AI-driven energy demands, Michigan's push for a smaller carbon footprint and Holtec purchasing the decommissioned plant led to a push in taking the reactor back online. Holtec has received ample funding from the state and federal government to make it all possible. Beyond Nuclear, a Maryland based non-profit nuclear plant safety watchdog, has referred to Palisades as a 'zombie reactor', given the unprecedented request that it be put back online. Kevin Kamps, an expert in radioactive waste at Beyond Nuclear, told The National that Holtec has never operated a nuclear reactor. 'It is not intelligent, nor wise, to restart the 60-year-old reactor at Palisades,' he said. 'It was designed in the mid-1960s, built in 1967, and it was a lemon from the get-go.' This was a reference to a lawsuit from Consumers Power, which accused the construction company that built Palisades of flawed design and construction. Mr Kamps, who lives in West Michigan where Palisades is located, also said that recent developments with more energy-efficient AI offerings, such as DeepSeek in China, nullify the argument that nuclear energy deserves a renaissance to meet a growing energy need. 'Renewables, combined with storage and efficiency, could power AI data centres,' he said. 'Restarting Palisades is an unnecessary risk from both cost and time perspectives, but also an unnecessary risk to health, safety, security and the environment.' He also pointed out that Arnold Gundersen, a former nuclear engineer-turned-vocal critic of the industry, has cautioned that given its age, Palisades might be susceptible to something called neutron embrittlement, making it more of a safety risk. Beyond Nuclear has also accused Holtec of trying to push for 'plaster fixes' of various tubes within the plant by using a process called 'sleeving', instead of replacing tubes and other equipment. Nick Culp, a senior manager for government affairs and communications with Holtec Palisades, dismissed Beyond Nuclear's concerns. 'The plant remains on track and on budget for a safe restart, supported by extensive inspections, testing, preventive maintenance, repairs, and upgrades,' he told The National, also pointing to Palisades's operational evaluation just before it shutting down in 2022. 'Palisades operated in the NRC's highest safety category and completed multiple record-setting production runs, which is a testament to the plant's strong material condition and the professionalism of the team.' As to the allegations of sleeving for repairs, Mr Culp said that Holtec was using an 'industry-proven repair method' in line with its preventive maintenance strategy. 'Each sleeved tube is subject to thorough testing and inspection before return to service,' he said. Despite the controversy surrounding Palisades, Mr Culp said that Palisades is still on track for what he described as a 'safe restart'. If all goes according to plan and if the NRC continues to grant approval amid regulatory requirements, Palisades could be restarted by the end of this year. Holtec indicated that means less of a burden on the energy grid, along with thousands of jobs contributing to the West Michigan economy. It would be premature, however, for Holtec to take a victory lap on Palisades. Beyond Nuclear has filed a challenge to Holtec through the NRC, which Mr Kamps said revolves around the company's 'request to repair, not replace, the degraded steam generators' inside Palisades. He also said Beyond Nuclear also wants to litigate the matter in federal court. 'This could happen sooner rather than later,' he told The National. Meanwhile, the spike in electricity consumption due to the proliferation of AI has led energy providers to warn of a looming energy crunch. nuclear reactors, could prove to be pivotal for many parts of the US.
CBS News
25-07-2025
- Business
- CBS News
Palisades Nuclear Plant in Michigan moves one step closer to reopening
The Palisades Nuclear Power Plant in West Michigan continues on track to be the first commercial nuclear power plant in the U.S. to reopen after a shutdown, with one of the National Regulatory Commission approval steps now complete. Holtec International acquired the 800-megawatt Palisades plant along the Lake Michigan shoreline in Covert in 2022, with initial plans to dismantle it. But those plans changed, and there are confirmed customers for the electricity from the plant. A federal loan from the U.S. Department of Energy closed last fall, and three rounds of funding disbursements from that allocation have since been issued to Holetc. New fuel is expected to be delivered in late July or early August, the company said in an April 7 announcement. The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission issued a notice July 17 that it planned to issue a "no significant hazards consideration determination" and approve the operating license and technical specifications to support the restart of power options at Palisades. That step took place on Thursday, the agency announced. "While these NRC approvals will allow Holtec to load fuel, there are still several licensing actions under NRC review and additional requirements that need to be met before the plant can start up," the press release said. Palisades, which is a pressurized water reactor, first went into operation in 1971 and shut down in 2022. Many of the government documents on Palisades' operations and restart plans can be found on the Nuclear Regulatory Commission site.
Reuters
04-07-2025
- Business
- Reuters
Plans to restart construction of VC Summer reactors gain traction
July 3 - South Carolina's state-owned utility and project owner Santee Cooper has selected 'fewer than five' proposals from 14 received in a request for interest (RFI) to potentially acquire and finish building the reactors, which sit next to Dominion Energy's Summer 1, an active reactor, a Santee Cooper spokesperson told Reuters Events. The selected entities will now conduct additional due diligence and submit final proposals for Santee Cooper's evaluation. "We expect to complete this process by the end of 2025. Santee Cooper does not intend to own or operate the units, but rather to enable interested entities to pursue completion and operation of the units for the benefit of all South Carolina," the spokesperson said. In May, Santee Coooper said it received a 'robust' response to the RFI, with applications from "leading construction, financial, utility, and technology firms from around the world,' and that a detailed review of the proposals would take 9 to 18 months to complete. When construction of Summer 2 and 3 was cancelled in 2017 due mainly to cost overruns and the bankruptcy of the primary contractor, Westinghouse, over $9 billion had been spent to complete less than 50% of the reactors. However, in recent years strong demand for clean power from hyperscale data centers and decarbonization efforts has led to new investments to restart mothballed reactors. Holtec International is set to restart the Palisades Nuclear Plant in Michigan later this year and Constellation Energy aims to reopen the Three Mile Island Unit 1 in New York in 2027. CHART: Growth in commercial sector power consumption by state (2019-2023) In May, President Trump issued a raft of executive orders to usher in a 'nuclear renaissance' and said the U.S. aims to initiate the construction of 10 new large reactors by 2030. The new policies are part of government efforts to expand U.S. nuclear energy capacity from around 100 GW today to 400 GW by 2050. Thanks to the advanced stage of construction and existing infrastructure on-site, VC Summer 2 and 3 could be among this batch of new reactors. Following an inspection in September 2024, the South Carolina Nuclear Advisory Council (SCNAC) concluded that the site was in mostly 'excellent condition,' with unit 2 at approximately 48% completion and unit 3 with 'significantly less' completion. 'There is an extensive inventory of materials, assemblies and electrical and instrumentation systems that is well maintained and inventoried in a series of warehouses,' the council noted. This assessment suggests that VC Summer 2 and 3 could be "the easiest new large nuclear site" to be completed in the U.S., according to Adam Stein, director of Nuclear Energy Innovation at the Breakthrough Institute. "A significant amount of work has already been done, many long lead-time components are still on site ready to be used,' he told Reuters Events. 'If you can get around the other challenges such as public perception and state-level government approval, then this is, in terms of large nuclear plants in the U.S., the low-hanging fruit.' Download exclusive insights from the Reuters Events: SMR & Advanced Reactor 2025 conference in May. Between 80% and 90% of the hard parts required to complete the project are still in inventory, Santee Cooper's director of Nuclear Development, Steve Nance, said during a SCNAC public meeting on March 31. After construction of VC Summer 2 and 3 was terminated, Santee Cooper and Westinghouse agreed to sell parts of the AP1000s under construction to other sites overseas, but many components have not yet been delivered. 'These parts are earmarked for Ukraine, which I don't need to tell you, is quite sensitive in terms of how that may ever actually go to fruition or not," Nance told the SCNAC meeting, adding that commercial commitments on those parts expire if they are not withdrawn "by a certain date." Some long-lead items still available at the site include four circulating pipes, part of the simulator, and most of the transformers needed, according to Nance. Lessons from Vogtle 3 and 4 Vogtle 3 and 4 in neighboring Georgia were concluded in 2023 and 2024, respectively, approximately seven years after the original estimated completion date, with costs more than doubling from the initial projection of $14 billion. They were the first U.S. nuclear projects to feature the Westinghouse AP1000 nuclear reactors, the same Generation III+ pressurized water reactors that would be installed in VC Summer 2 and 3. CHART: US nuclear power capacity additions by year of initial operation The delays that hampered Vogtle 3 and 4 were in part related to reactor design changes, with around 200 license amendments with the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) that resulted in construction halts while waiting for reviews and approvals, according to Stein. But VC Summer 2 and 3 are unlikely to face the same type of delays thanks to the knowledge acquired following the completion of the Vogtle projects. 'Vogtle units 3 and 4 showed that AP1000s can be built. There are a lot of lessons learned that came out of that project that could presumably be leveraged to make sure that future AP1000s go more smoothly and faster and at lower costs,' said Sidney Fowler, energy attorney at Pillsbury Winthrop Shaw Pittman law firm in Washington, DC. The supply chain and construction expertise developed for the construction of Vogtle 3 and 4 is still available to complete VC Summer 2 and 3, according to Keith Drudy, chief commercial officer at nuclear technology firm Studsvik Scandpower and chair of the Operations and Power Division of the American Nuclear Society. Strong momentum A long-term power purchase agreement (PPA) with a hyperscaler – as is the case with Three Mile Island, which signed a 20-year PPA with Microsoft in September – could further strengthen the economics of the project, said Drudy. "I'd say now will be the time to build additional AP1000s. Every day that we wait, we lose momentum," said Drudy, who has worked for Westinghouse and the Vogtle 3 and 4 projects. "We are in a very good place for a reasonably low-risk large capital project," he added. For exclusive nuclear insights, sign up to our newsletter. A May 23 Trump executive order instructing the NRC to accelerate construction and operation permits for new reactors could help ensure that VC Summer 2 and 3 are completed in a timely manner. "The regulatory case is pretty rock-solid for this one. Some of the things that folks putting together this project would need to keep an eye on is the availability of large components. As long as that is on the schedule, I think it can mimic the work done at Vogtle and speed up through lessons learned," said Katy Huff, associate professor of Nuclear, Plasma, and Radiological Engineering at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. The upward trend in electricity prices caused partly by the increase in demand supports nuclear deployment – the Energy Information Administration forecasts a 7% increase in average wholesale electricity prices across most regions in 2025. 'The biggest risk to any nuclear project is a dramatic drop in electricity prices which undercuts the economic case for the project, and right now we are not going in that direction,' Huff said.
Indian Express
03-07-2025
- Business
- Indian Express
Holtec plans to go public early next year to part-finance proposed SMR-based projects in India: CEO
Holtec International, a key player in the American nuclear industry that was cleared by the US Department of Energy (DoE) earlier this year to invest in India's atomic energy sector, plans to go public between April and June next year to raise around $5 billion, Kris P. Singh, the Indian-American promoter and CEO of the company said. Camden, New Jersey-based Holtec, one of the world's largest exporters of capital nuclear components and a frontrunner in the emerging small modular reactor (SMR) space, proposes to combine an initial public offering with some private placement to raise capital for its upcoming projects, including proposed SMR-based projects in India. 'Foreign companies are now getting ready to come and invest in India… At our end, we understand that a lot of capital is needed to do that. Of course, we will borrow capital, but our own capital has to be increased. So we have launched a programme for early next year, and around April or so, we will do an IPO. In addition to the public offering, we will also do some private placement… So, a portion of the funds (being raised) will be through the IPO, while another portion would be through private placement… We want to raise about $5 billion to begin with, and then, of course, we will raise more. And the one main reason I'm doing it is so that we can go build in India,' Singh told The Indian Express. On the private placement plan, Singh said he proposes to unbundle some parts of the company (Holtec International) and offer some of these segments to investors through the private market, including sovereign wealth funds and other investors. The idea, he said, is to altogether raise about $5 billion by mid-next year, between April and June 2026, so that Holtec International is 'well placed to begin construction of SMRs in India'. 'That is, if India puts in place the legislative provisions needed for enabling these investments. If that does not go through, I will direct that (the funding) to other places. But the idea is to get ready in the hope that the Indian government will clear the way for us to invest,' Singh said. If completed, Holtec's IPO would be the largest nuclear energy listing in years. Holtec's planned entry into the public markets comes at a time of surging interest in nuclear energy from data centers and the clean energy transitions planned by utilities across markets. The company is also learnt to be in talks with Abu Dhabi-based investment fund International Holdings Company for a potential fundraise. For India, Holtec holds special significance. Unlike Westinghouse Electric Co and GE Hitachi Nuclear Energy, the two American nuclear industry flag bearers that were seen as early frontrunners for an entry into India's civil nuclear sector, the smaller, privately-owned Holtec is now suddenly in the lead to invest in the country's nuclear sector. The company was accorded an unprecedented regulatory clearance by the US DoE less than three months ago that potentially sets it on course to leverage the commercial potential of the Indo-US civil nuclear deal. The March 26 approval from DoE effectively cleared Holtec International's application for specific authorisation with respect to the DoE's restrictive regulation that is referred to as '10CFR810'. This specific authorisation (SA IN2023-001) now conditionally permitted Holtec to transfer 'unclassified small modular reactor technology' (SMRs) to its regional subsidiary Holtec Asia, as well as Tata Consulting Engineers Ltd, and Larsen & Toubro Ltd in India. Holtec's pitch is for fostering a public-private initiative centred on the American company's flagship small modular reactor, the SMR-300, to potentially help break this stasis in the nuclear engagement between the two countries, with the possibility of using existing coal plant sites in India to deploy its proposed SMR-based projects and the possibility of joint manufacturing at some point in the future. For that to happen, the Indian government is gearing up to move two crucial amendments in the laws governing the country's atomic energy sector. The first relates to the easing of provisions in the nuclear liability law while the second amendment is aimed at enabling private companies to enter nuclear power plant operations in the country, and could also enable foreign companies to potentially take a minority equity exposure in upcoming nuclear power projects. Hitherto, atomic energy has been one of India's most closed sectors. The twin legal amendments are being seen as a reform push that could help leverage the commercial potential of the Indo-US civil nuclear deal nearly two decades after it was inked. New Delhi is also keen to package this as part of a broader trade and investment outreach with Washington DC, which could eventually culminate with a trade pact that is currently under negotiation. On the US side, the issue of getting a specific '10CFR810' authorisation (Part 810 of Title 10, Code of Federal Regulations of the US Atomic Energy Act of 1954) had been a big regulatory hurdle for New Delhi. This is because the regulation, while giving American companies such as Holtec the ability to export equipment to countries such as India under some strict safeguards, explicitly barred them from manufacturing any nuclear equipment or performing any nuclear design work in India. This provision was a non-starter from New Delhi's perspective, which wanted to participate in manufacturing the SMRs and co-produce the nuclear components for its domestic needs. With Washington DC having eased out the regulatory hurdle in the form of the 810 authorisation, the ball is now in New Delhi's court to push through the two legislations at its end. As of now, two SMR projects have reached the operational stage globally. One is an SMR named Akademik Lomonosov floating power unit in Russia that has two-modules of 35 MWe (megawatt electric) and started commercial operation in May 2020. The other is a demonstration SMR project called HTR-PM in China that was grid-connected in December 2021 and is reported to have started commercial operations in December 2023. Apart from Holtec's SMR-300, other emerging western contenders in the SMR segment include the Rolls-Royce SMR, NuScale's VOYGR SMR, Westinghouse Electric's AP300 SMR and GE-Hitachi's BWRX-300. India is hoping to pitch itself as a credible alternative to the incumbents in this niche field, riding on its strong track record of having operated small-sized reactors over an extended period of time and the ability to manufacture nuclear reactors cost-effectively and at scale. This also comes at a time when Beijing is working on an ambitious plan to seize the opportunity of global leadership in the SMR space, unlike large reactors where China has been a latecomer. Like India, Beijing is seeing SMRs as a tool of its diplomatic outreach in the Global South and that the country could shake up the SMR industry, just as it has done in the electric vehicle sector. Established in 1986, Holtec provides spent fuel storage and logistics support for over 140 nuclear plants worldwide, as well as services such as nuclear decommissioning and increasingly, new reactor development. The company is now attempting what would be a first in American history—reviving a shuttered nuclear plant. The Palisades Nuclear Plant in Michigan, closed in 2022 for economic reasons, is slated to restart by the end of 2025 and this reactivation is being funded in part by a $1.5 billion loan guarantee from the US DoE. Holtec plans to install two of its own SMR-300 small modular reactors at the site, in collaboration with Hyundai Engineering & Construction. Holtec's SMR-300 is a pressurised light-water reactor that will produce at least 300MWe of electric power on a small parcel of land. Unlike most traditional nuclear power plants that require large quantities of water, the SMR-300 can be adjusted to use an air-cooling system and the modular design means it is easy to scale up projects. The criticism is that there is still no commercial SMR project that is up and running and the viability of these units is yet to be proven. Holtec already has a footprint in India, with a Pune-based company operating in the non-nuclear energy business.
Yahoo
16-06-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Allegan County reaffirms support for Palisades restart. Where do efforts stand?
Holtec International still awaits official approval from the United States Nuclear Regulatory Commission to re-open Palisades Nuclear Power Plant. In the meantime, local elected officials have reiterated their support for the project. Holtec is seeking regulatory approval to restart power operations at Palisades after the plant closed for decommissioning in May 2022. A federal loan of $1.52 billion was approved for the project in 2024, but the NRC has yet to officially approve the restart. During a meeting June 12, the Allegan County Board of Commissioners unanimously approved a resolution to 'reaffirm support' for the re-opening of Palisades. The board passed a similar resolution in January 2023. The resolution includes several points Holtec has made regarding the restart, including the benefits of job creation, grid stability and reliability, and clean energy. According to the NRC, approval is necessary to restore the plant's license for operational status, but is also needed before Holtec can ready plant components or make any needed upgrades or repairs. Holtec has previously requested the NRC make a determination this summer, in hopes of resuming power operations in the fourth quarter of 2025. Most recently, Holtec announced the NRC issued a Final Environmental Assessment and Finding of No Significant Impact for Palisades. The ruling found 'the project poses no significant environmental risk,' Holtec wrote in an update. Holtec also said an Initial Licensed Operator Class is on-track for NRC examination in June, which will add 26 federally licensed operators to the site. A separate class is underway and scheduled for testing in early 2026. In late May, Palisades received full accreditation for its maintenance and technical training program, completing the "complement of accreditations' required for operation. Two emergency preparedness exercises have been completed at Palisades, with more scheduled for this summer. The drills will culminate in a graded exercise evaluated by the NRC and FEMA. Earlier this year, a coalition of environmental groups and a group of residents living near Palisades filed petitions with the NRC's Atomic Safety and Licensing Board in an effort to stop or delay the restart. In March, the board denied requests for full hearings on the petitions. More: 'Not admissible': Request for formal hearing challenging Palisades re-opening denied Palisades ceased power operations in May 2022, and was sold to Holtec for decommissioning shortly after. Just a few months later, a plan to restart the plant was announced. An initial funding request was denied, but a second effort was launched early in 2023. Holtec is also seeking to build two small modular reactors, SMR-300s, at Palisades, which would add at least 600 megawatts to the plant's 800-megawatt generating capacity. Preliminary activities are underway and Holtec plans to file a construction permit application for the SMRs in 2026. There are currently no upcoming meetings scheduled for the Palisades restart, per the NRC website. Learn more about regulatory actions and upcoming meetings at — Contact reporter Mitchell Boatman at mboatman@ This article originally appeared on The Holland Sentinel: Allegan County reaffirms support for restart at Palisades Plant
