On Monday, PG&E took its first big step to keeping Diablo Canyon nuclear power plant operating past 2025.
The utility company sent a request to the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission essentially asking how it should proceed with an application to extend Diablo Canyon’s life.
The power plant was originally scheduled to shut down its two nuclear reactors in 2024 and 2025.
However, a recent push by the governor and the state Legislature led to the passage of Senate Bill 846 on Sept. 1 allocating up to $1.4 billion to PG&E so it can keep the plant running through 2030.
The 2,200-megawatt plant currently provides about 9% of the state’s total electricity supply, according to PG&E. The push from the state to extend its operations came after failures to procure enough carbon-free energy in the midst of a deepening energy crisis as demand stresses supply limited by looming plant closures.
PG&E’s request to the Nuclear Regulatory Commission is the first licensing action the utility has taken, it said in a news release Monday.
“This request to renew our licenses is another step to help California reliably achieve its bold decarbonization goals,” said Paula Gerfen, PG&E senior vice president and chief nuclear officer, in an emailed statement. “We will help deliver on those goals while continuing to run one of the top performing plants in the country.”
There are a few tracks forward for PG&E.
First, PG&E asked the Nuclear Regulatory Commission to allow it to pick up from where it left off when it last applied to renew its license for Diablo Canyon in 2009.
PG&E withdrew the application in 2018 when the utility reached agreements with environmental groups to close the plant in 2025 and replace it with solar and other forms of renewable energy. The utility had wanted to extend the nuclear power plant’s life to 2045.
Because of that previous renewal application, the Nuclear Regulatory Commission already has much of the information required, albeit some will have to be updated, according to Victor Dricks, a senior public affairs officer with the commission.
That means the process to review the application would likely be quicker than it is normally, which is about 20 to 24 months, Dricks said.
Alternatively, the commission could ask PG&E to file a completely new license renewal application.
When PG&E applied for renewal in 2009, the NRC was still reviewing it in 2015 before the utility company asked for that review to be suspended. Should the commission request that PG&E file a new application, the utility is asking permission to do so by Dec. 31, 2023, according to Dricks.
Additionally, PG&E has requested the NRC allow it to continue operating Diablo Canyon past 2025 while its license renewal application is being reviewed, Dricks said. This could be permitted through a license amendment, he added.
In addition to the need for renewed licenses from the NRC, the path for operating Diablo Canyon past 2025 includes regulatory approvals from such entities as the U.S. Department of Energy, the California State Lands Commission, the California Energy Commission, the California Coastal Commission and the California Public Utilities Commission.
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