NPPD Taps Four Nebraska Sites for Nuclear Plant
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- Nebraska Public Power District (NPPD) announced four potential sites for a new nuclear power plant: Beatrice, Sutherland, Norfolk, and Brownville, with Gage County on the list despite its history of opposition to wind energy.
- Larry Allder, a Cortland-area resident who led the charge against wind turbines in Gage County, said he supports the proposed nuclear plant, calling it "clean" and "the way of the future."
- NPPD CEO Tom Kent said communities on the shortlist are "really interested in hosting" nuclear development, and leaders in all four communities told Grist they are largely open to a project.
- NPPD was awarded over $27 million in cost-shared funding from the Department of Energy to pursue a federal siting permit, though Kent said the money covers less than half of the application costs.
- Plant Vogtle in Georgia is held up as a cautionary tale: its two new reactors came online 15 years after the license application, cost more than $30 billion, and triggered rate hikes and public backlash.
- Nuclear Economics Consulting Group CEO Edward Kee noted that at least 11 commercial nuclear reactor plans have been canceled in the U.S. since 2010, and projects have historically run years behind schedule and over budget.
- Former Nuclear Regulatory Commission senior executive Joseph Giitter warned that small modular reactors (SMRs) — the design NPPD is eyeing alongside larger reactors — carry financial risks because the technology "hasn't been proven yet."
Why it matters: NPPD ratepayers could be on the hook for a nuclear build that has historically run catastrophically over budget — Plant Vogtle's $30 billion overrun triggered rate hikes in Georgia, and 11 U.S. reactor projects have been canceled since 2010. But the willingness of communities, including former wind opponents, to embrace nuclear gives NPPD a social license that renewables have repeatedly failed to secure in Nebraska.
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