(WSAZ/WKYT) – On Wednesday, Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear signed a bill into law, which is intended to lower utility costs by incentivizing nuclear power companies to locate in the state.
SB 57 creates the Nuclear Reactor Site Readiness Pilot Program, meant to advance nuclear ener
gy development in Kentucky. Supporters say the plan will lower utility costs in the long term for Kentuckians.
State Sen. Phillip Wheeler (R-Pike County), one of the bill’s sponsors, told WSAZ he hopes to put nuclear plants on old coal plants in Eastern Kentucky, saying the project will bring both jobs and lower utility costs to the region.
“If we can replace some of those plants with nuclear plants as well, I think it would be a way to provide jobs in Eastern Kentucky, as well as cheaper, more reliable electricity,” he said.
“Some coal plants with the infrastructure in place, when they come up for retirement, putting a nuclear plant in its place can possibly reduce the cost of that plant by as much as 30 percent while providing hundreds of very good paying jobs in an area that desperately needs them,” Wheeler continued, citing research he’s read.
According to a report from the U.S. Department of Energy, “new nuclear power plants could save up to 35 percent on construction costs, depending on how much of the existing site assets could be repurposed from retired coal power plants.”
The same report found that “employment in the region associated with an incoming nuclear plant could increase by more than 650 permanent jobs spread across the plant, supply chain, and surrounding community,” and that those nuclear jobs paid 50 percent higher than jobs in other energy fields.
Wheeler also noted that nuclear is considered more efficient than other energy sources, contributing to its lower costs, and safer to make than it used to.
“I think it’s the vision of modernity in eastern Kentucky,” he told WSAZ. “A lot of people like to think that Eastern Kentucky is a place that’s stuck in the past. I think that the possibilities of this bill show that eastern Kentucky has not only had a bright past, but can also have a proud future, or a proud past with a bright future.”
Still, Wheeler said the potential relief for eastern Kentuckians from high utility costs is years away.
“I don’t want to give anybody false hope. This is not something that’s going to solve the problem overnight,” he said “But what it does, it puts an infrastructure in place and it lets people who are interested in investing in nuclear know that the Commonwealth is a place ready to partner with you in doing business and developing that reliable infrastructure by stating that we’re willing to put up at least one third of the cost of $25 million for site preparation and permitting to get one of these reactors and power generating plants in place.”
According to Wheeler, nuclear energy is just a piece of the puzzle when it comes to lowering energy costs.
“I think the key to a successful economic strategy is having a variety of options,” he said. “I’m good with solar, I’m good with wind, I’m good with coal, I’m good with gas, I’m good with nuclear, hydro. Having that all of the above strategy is really where you get to the most reliable and cheapest energy costs.”