“Appalachian Power, an American Electric Power (AEP) company, said Nov. 14 it plans to file an application with the Virginia State Corporation Commission in spring 2025 to bring small modular reactors (SMRs) to Virginia,” reports Daily Energy Insider:
In addition, Appalachian Power will apply for part of the U.S. Department of Energy’s $900 million grant program to hasten deployment of SMRs and help reduce customer costs, the company said. “SMR technology is a key component to providing perfect power to our customers,” said Bill Fehrman, AEP president and chief executive officer. “Appalachian Power and AEP are committed to working with our states to develop energy solutions that align with state policy goals and reliably serve our customers.”
Representatives with Charleston, W.Va.-headquartered Appalachian Power have already identified a potential site for an SMR project on company-owned Joshua Falls property in Campbell County, Va. The site provides access to existing electrical infrastructure that is necessary for a generation project, according to the company, which plans to start the early site permit application process. “Advanced nuclear power is at the heart of Virginia’s All-American, All-of-the Above Energy Plan; a plan that prioritizes abundant, reliable, affordable, and increasingly clean power to fuel our thriving and growing economy,” Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin said…
The planned site includes a 765 kilovolt substation and nearby roadways can support moving the necessary equipment onsite, according to Appalachian Power, which noted that the relatively small footprint of an SMR allows them to be constructed in areas that were not previously feasible for nuclear energy generation. SMR sites can also be scaled to match the energy needs of the state. A single SMR can generate up to 500 megawatts (MW) of clean energy, the company said.
In October, CNN reported that “old, unexploded” nuclear “warheads” are being turned into fuel in Tennessee, “to power the next generation of America’s nuclear reactors — small, modular power stations that are easier and cheaper to build. They require far less upkeep and physical space than the aging fleet of large nuclear power plants.”
Poland’s ‘Project Phoenix’ plans to build small modular reactors across Poland. Such reactors are a new technology that has been used largely in pilot projects.
“Nuclear power is the safest form of energy we have, if you consider deaths per megawatt of energy produced,” notes Yale University’s Steven Novella. “Wind turbines, surprisingly, kill more people than nuclear plants,” notes an environmentalist. And “solar panels require 17 times more materials in the form of cement, glass, concrete, and steel than do nuclear plants, and create over 200 times more waste,” such as “dust from toxic heavy metals including lead, cadmium, and chromium.”
Nuclear plants emit no air pollution, only harmless steam. Unlike wind farms, nuclear power plants don’t kill birds. The biggest utility that generates wind power pleaded guilty to federal crimes for killing 150 eagles.
Many years ago, France and Sweden replaced most of their fossil-fueled electricity with nuclear power, and as a result, ended up emitting less than a tenth of the world average of carbon dioxide per kilowatt-hour. The air in Germany got dirtier because of its hostility to nuclear power. Coal-fired power plants were turned back on to replace nuclear plants that generated no air pollution, but have been closed down. Nuclear power is best for the environment, notes Reason Magazine’s Ronald Bailey. Yet as he observes, “Germany idiotically shut down its last three nuclear power plants” in April 2023. “Until 2011, the country obtained one-quarter of its electricity from 17 nuclear power plants. Shutting down nuclear plants results in more mining of coal, making it harder to protect “natural landscapes.”
Due to progressive laws and mandates, Appalachian Power has ended up charging a higher rate for electricity. In January, the Bacon’s Rebellion blog noted that Appalachian Power customers pay a higher rate for electricity than other utility customers in Virginia, and a higher rate than customers of an electric cooperative that once charged users a higher rate:
NOVEC, or Northern Virginia Electric Cooperative, will be charging its residential users just under $114 for each 1,000 kilowatt hours of usage, down more than $26. The commercial and industrial users among its 175,000 customers are seeing comparable reductions.
In comparison, Dominion Energy Virginia … is charging residential customers about $135 for the same 1,000 kwh and has petitions pending at the State Corporation Commission to add another $10 or so to that. Appalachian Power Company, serving parts of western Virginia, was charging about $160, and as of this month that will reach about $185.
Rates may increase further due to a law passed by Democrats. The Thomas Jefferson Institute’s Stephen Haner said that “Compliance with the 2020 Virginia Clean Economy Act will result in a 49% increase in monthly costs by 2035 for residential customers of the Appalachian Power Company, according to a State Corporation Commission staff analysis. That’s a $57 increase on a typical 2020 residential bill of $117.”
