"This approval ensures that St. Lucie will continue to provide safe, reliable, low-cost energy for generations to come," said Scott Bores, president of Florida Power & Light Company. The utility is a subsidiary of the plant’s operator, NextEra Energy. "We are pleased that nuclear power will remain an integral part of Florida's energy future and a vital contributor to the local and state economies," he continued.
Background: Located in Jensen Beach, Fla., St. Lucie is one of two nuclear power plants in the state, along with Turkey Point. Units 3 and 4 of Turkey Point already have received SLRs, extending operations into 2052 and 2053, respectively.
According to Florida Power & Light, St. Lucie generates enough power to provide electricity to more than 1 million homes and businesses, supplying roughly 11 percent of the utility’s electricity supply. The facility provides 400 permanent, high-paying jobs and generates more than $42 million in annual county taxes.
St. Lucie is the third nuclear power plant this month to have operating licenses extended. According to the NRC, the agency has renewed 18 operating reactor licenses in the last 15 months. In early April, the NRC approved a 20-year extension for Diablo Canyon-1 and -2 in California, and the SLR for Robinson-2 in South Carolina was approved last week.
Diablo Canyon’s future, however, is pending a decision by state lawmakers, as a 2022 state law requires the California Legislature to approve any extension of operations at Diablo Canyon beyond 2030.
Application updates: According to NRC’s status list of initial and subsequent license renewal applications, two applications are currently under review: SLR applications for the two-unit Hatch power plant in Georgia and the one-unit Nine Mile Point plant in New York.
The NRC accepted Nine Mile Point’s application on April 23 and announced an opportunity for the public to request a hearing on the application. The filing deadline is June 29. Additional information on the hearing process can be found on the NRC website.
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