NUSTART NEWS RELEASE — Washington — The nuclear industry’s growing confidence in its ability to meet the regulatory and technical requirements to build new reactors is encouraging growth and change among the companies that make up NuStart Energy Development.
NuStart is a consortium of energy companies and nuclear vendors working to demonstrate the nation’s licensing process and to complete designs for the first advanced nuclear power reactors in the U.S. in nearly 30 years.
“NuStart’s unique combination of utilities and vendors creates a strong peer network that can reach shared solutions for building new nuclear generation in the United States,” said NuStart President Marilyn Kray. “As we move forward and industry growth continues, it’s only natural that some NuStart members will achieve their initial goals and move on while other utilities find that NuStart membership suits their growing business goals. Consequently, we are announcing some planned changes in our membership.”
Detroit Edison, an investor-owned electric utility serving 2.2 million customers in Southeastern Michigan and a subsidiary of DTE Energy, plans to join NuStart, citing the opportunity for additional collaboration with industry peers in developing standardized regulatory processes and designs for new reactors. Detroit Edison is preparing a Combined Operating License application, but the company has not decided to construct an additional nuclear unit. The license application is being prepared to preserve the option of building a nuclear plant if circumstances are favorable for that alternative in the future.
Constellation Energy, based in Baltimore, and an original member of NuStart, has notified NuStart that it plans to withdraw from the consortium in December, as provided for in NuStart’s operating agreement.
In July 2007, Constellation Energy announced it was forming a joint venture with EDF, the world’s largest nuclear operator, to form UniStar Nuclear Energy (UNE). Through this partnership, Constellation Energy plans to build upon the foundation it began with its involvement in NuStart to license, and potentially construct and operate, a fully standardized fleet of U.S. Evolutionary Power Reactors (EPR) at select sites throughout the country.
"We certainly see these changes in our NuStart membership as evidence of growth and confidence in the future of the nation’s nuclear industry," Kray said.
She points out that NuStart is successfully participating in the new regulatory process, has helped develop sound, shared methods for implementing regulatory and design standardization, and is nearing completion of combined construction and operating license applications for a Westinghouse AP1000 reactor design and a GE ESBWR design.
“Detroit Edison’s membership in NuStart gives us additional avenues for sharing expertise and lessons learned as the industry develops new reactor applications. And Constellation Energy’s plans to build on what has already been achieved shows confidence in the ability to use standardized processes and designs to reach individual company goals,” Kray said.
Ron May, senior vice president with DTE Energy said, “Detroit Edison’s participation in NuStart is a solid step forward in the process of obtaining a license for a new reactor. It gives us the benefit of building on existing industry success so that if the regulatory environment in Michigan changes to support new generation we can make a decision whether to pursue construction with greater confidence.”
Prior to forming a joint venture with EDF, Constellation Energy joined with reactor supplier AREVA, NP, in the fall of 2005 to form UniStar Nuclear, LLC, a company created to market a U.S.-modified version of AREVA’s EPR advanced-reactor technology in the U.S.
"Through our partnerships with AREVA and EDF, Constellation Energy is now playing a leadership role in the U.S. nuclear renaissance," said Joe Turnage, senior vice president of UNE and Constellation Energy Nuclear Group, a Constellation Energy subsidiary. "Our experience with NuStart has played a role in achieving that leadership status and will prove beneficial moving forward as we continue to expand our business for the benefit of our customers and the entire industry."
“We think these opportunities to reach across boundaries and share experiences, lessons learned, and other information are vital to our nation’s energy future,” said Kray. “Nuclear energy is a safe, reliable source of electricity without greenhouse gases, and as long as we face environmental pressures and increased power demand, we need to keep nuclear as one of our nation’s generation assets.”
Constellation Energy, Baltimore, MD, Duke Energy, Charlotte, NC, Detroit Edison, Detroit, MI (membership pending), EDF International North America, Washington, D.C., Entergy Nuclear, Jackson, MS, Exelon Generation, Philadelphia, PA, Florida Power & Light Company, Juno Beach, FL, Progress Energy, Raleigh, NC, South Carolina Electric & Gas, Columbia, SC, Southern Company, Atlanta, GA, Tennessee Valley Authority, Knoxville, TN, GE-Hitachi Nuclear Energy, Wilmington, NC, Westinghouse Electric Co., Pittsburgh, PA
For Additional Information Contact:
Constellation Energy: 410-470-7433
DTE: 313-235-5555
NuStart Energy: 256-200-2359