Duke Suspends Effort to License Nuclear Units; NRC Shoot s Down Texas Nuclear Plant Expansion

Duke Energy Suspends Effort to License North Carolina Nuclear Units:
Reuters, May 2, 2013

http://mobile.reuters.com/article/idUSL2N0DJ2QG20130502?irpc=932
Duke Energy, the largest U.S. electric utility, says it has notified regulators that it will drop plans to build two new nuclear reactors in North Carolina due to slow growth in power demand. Progress Energy, which Duke acquired last year, proposed building two AP1000 reactors at the Harris nuclear plant site in Wake County, North Carolina, and submitted an application in 2008 for a construction and operating license from the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission. The company's supply forecast indicates additional nuclear generation won't be needed at Harris for at least 15 years. However, Duke said it will continue to work to obtain NRC licenses for two new reactors in Levy County, Florida, and another two reactors in Gaffney, South Carolina. Four new reactors are currently under construction at two sites in the southeastern United States: two at Scana Corp's Summer nuclear station in South Carolina and two at Southern Co's Vogtle station in Georgia.

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NRC Shoots Down Texas Nuclear Plant Expansion Citing Too Much Foreign Ownership:
Dallas News, by James Osborne, April 30, 2013

http://bizbeatblog.dallasnews.com/2013/04/nrc-shoots-down-texas-nuclear-plant-expansion.html
and San Antonio Express-News, by Nolan Hicks, April 30, 2013
http://nukefreetexas.org/2013/05/regulators-too-much-foreign-ownership-for-nuclear-expansion
Plans to build two new reactors at the South Texas Project nuclear facility outside Bay City have hit a road block. The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission ruled that a partnership between NRG and Toshiba Corp. through the holding company Nuclear Innovation North America violated a U.S law prohibiting foreign control of nuclear power plants. The holding company plans to appeal the ruling to the NRC’s Atomic Safety Licensing Board, arguing that NRG controls 90 percent of the holding company, a NRG spokesman said. NRG and Toshiba remain hopeful they can convince the atomic safety board to overrule NRC staff. But they will likely face an uphill climb. No date for a hearing has been set.