[ RadSafe ] TXU Corp. First to Commit to New Domestic Nuclear Capacity?

[Orthen, Rick]

First, there was this story:

03.01.07

TXU Halts Efforts To Obtain Permits for Eight Coal-Fueled Units



DALLAS, TX - TXU announced today it has officially suspended efforts to obtain permits for eight coal-fueled power units in Texas.

A Motion to Stay was filed yesterday with the State Office of Administrative Hearings (SOAH) for seven coal-fueled power units that are under consideration in contested proceedings before SOAH.

The company also has suspended permitting activities related to an eighth permit, which was not a part of the contested proceedings.

The stay request is for a period of up to six months upon approval. Upon closing of the merger agreement with Kohlberg Kravis Roberts & Co. (KKR) and Texas Pacific Group (TPG) announced earlier this week, TXU plans to formally withdraw the eight pending air permit applications.

“This is an important step in fulfilling TXU’s commitment, made in connection with the recently announced merger, to immediately seek to suspend the permit application process for the eight units announced last year,” said Mike McCall, chief executive officer, TXU Wholesale. “Further, upon closing the merger agreement, TXU does not intend to apply or reapply for permits to build additional coal units utilizing current pulverized coal-fuel technology.”

Then this one:

March 14, 2007 - TOKYO: Mitsubishi Heavy Industries Ltd. said Wednesday it has received an order for two nuclear reactors from TXU Corp. of the United States, the first export deal of equipment made by a Japanese company. Mitsubishi Heavy will provide two US-APWRs, its new pressurized water reactor with 1,700 megawatt-hours of generation capacity each, for TXU's nuclear power plant in the suburbs of Dallas, the Japanese manufacturer said in a statement.  This marks the first time for a Japanese company to receive an order from abroad for a nuclear power reactor made in Japan, said MHI spokesman Kengo Tatsukawa. Tatsukawa said the company could not disclose the amount of the deal because of "confidentiality rule" with the client. The Nikkei business newspaper said the combined value is estimated at 600 billion yen (US$5.17 billion; €3.91 billion).

TXU, the largest power operator in Texas, formally notified its reactor selection to the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission on Friday, the statement said. The U.S. power operator plans to start commercial operations at the plant with new reactors starting from 2015 to 2020, it said. Tokyo-based Mitsubish Heavy, Japan's largest heavy machinery maker, is scheduled to apply to the NRC its formal application for the reactor's design certification by the end of this year.

Mitsubishi estimates that "a few dozen" nuclear plants will be built in the U.S. by around 2030.

 

Richard F. Orthen

Senior Project Manager

Civil & Environmental Consultants, Inc.

Export, PA 

www.cecinc.com <http://www.cecinc.com/>