Entergy signs nuclear component deal with GE-Hitachi

Entergy signs nuclear component deal with GE-Hitachi
Washington (Platts)--31Jul2007Looking to prepare for increased demand for nuclear plant components in
the coming years, Entergy on Tuesday said it had signed a project development
agreement with GE-Hitachi Nuclear Energy that includes a major advanced
reactor components order.
Proceeding with the order now will ensure timely delivery of what Entergy
termed "schedule-critical" parts should the New Orleans-based company decide
to build a new nuclear unit. The company is positioning itself to retain the
option for a new nuclear unit that would be available in the 2017 timeframe,
and it is considering adding reactors at its existing Grand Gulf and River
Bend facilities.
Entergy Nuclear, through NuStart Energy Development, is on pace to
file a combined construction and operating license application with the US
Nuclear Regulatory Commission at the Grand Gulf site in Mississippi by the end
of the year, and it is targeting a mid-2008 COL application for the River Bend
site in Louisiana.
With a growing number of utilities around the world deciding to build
new nuclear reactors, the supply market for important plant components is
expected to tighten in the coming years, and by ordering components from the
GE-Hitachi consortium now, Entergy is preserving its ability to start
commercial operation of a new plant in 2017.
Terms of the project development deal and the order are confidential,
Entergy said. The order includes large forgings as well as fabrication of
several nuclear and turbine components for the reactor design, with several GE
businesses and a network of supply chain partners performing the work, Entergy
said.
As it considers whether to build a new reactor, Entergy said it is
examining projections for customer electricity usage, the cost of new nuclear
generation and the cost of alternative sources of baseload generation.
For more news, request a free trial to Platts Electric Power Daily at
http://www.platts.com/Request%20More%20Information/index.xml?src=story
or subscribe now at
http://www.platts.com/infostore/product_info.php?cPath=2_31&products_id=47