Proposed Nuclear Plant Gets Municipal Support In Utah

November 3, 2009—UAE Monthly Energy Update

Blue Castle Holdings, a private company based in Salt Lake City whose chief strategist is a former chair of the U.S. Nuclear Regula-tory Commission, said it is quietly negotiating agreements with utilities to build a 3,000-MW nuclear power plant.

The plant, to be located at Green River, Utah, west of Grand Junction, Colo., and near Interstate 70, would cost $13 billion to $16 bil-lion, according to Blue Castle CEO Aaron Tilton.
The company says Page Electric Utility signed a memorandum of understanding that outlines the municipal utility's potential participa-ton in the project.

Tilton said the company has been negoti-ating privately with other utilities, which he de-clined to identify. Page Electric was required to make its MOU public.

Page needs 30 MW of additional power for a water pipeline, Tilton said.

Blue Castle is interested in building a nu-clear plant because it has become practically impossible to get an air permit from the U.S. En-vironmental Protection Agency for a coal-fired power plant in Utah, given areas that are classi-fied as nonattainment areas for air pollution and high standards for airsheds around national parks.

Nils Diaz, chair of the U.S. Nuclear Regu-latory Commission between 2003 and 2006, is chief strategic officer of Blue Castle.

"The capacity costs will be borne by the electric utilities, and they will decide whether to build it or not," Tilton said. He expects Blue Castle to hold an equity interest in the plant, but said an-other company would maintain and operate it.

The two-unit nuclear project would pro-vide employment for 3,500 workers during seven years of construction. Another 400 workers would be hired for operation over the plant's 60-year life.
The nuclear plant could be operating as soon as 2019 or 2020.