Arizona Public Service says nuclear plant may close from vote, study disagrees
The conflict is heating up over an Arizona ballot measure to promote renewable energy and how it impact the Palo Verde Nuclear Generating Station — the most powerful nuclear power plant in the United States.
Power plant operator Arizona Public Service Co. said the 3,037 MW, three-unit plant would have to close if voters approve the measure to require utilities to obtain half their electricity from renewable power sources by 2030.
The measure goes up for a vote in November. APS has said it believes the measure would create an oversupply of renewable energy that would force coal and nuclear power units to shut down.
However, a study by energy firm ICF suggests the power plant could remain open even with a renewable energy mandate.
ICF’s study considered renewable expansion, natural gas expansion and baseline scenarios and found that Palo Verde’s large-scale baseload would remain competitive and economical next to lower cost gas or renewable power.
According to the Department of Energy’s Energy Information Administration, Palo Verde should stay open through 2050 even in nuclear power’s worst-case scenario model, which would force the shut-down of 80 percent of the country’s nuclear fleet….
