Exelon Notifies NRC Of Plans To Close Clinton, Quad Cities Power Plants In Illinois

Exelon Generation Wednesday announced that earlier this week it formally notified the Nuclear Regulatory Commission of plans to retire the Clinton and Quad Cities nuclear stations in Illinois in 2017 and 2018, respectively.

In Pennsylvania, Exelon announced plans to extend the license for the Peach Bottom Nuclear Plant on June 7, but is concerned about whether the Three Mile Island Nuclear Plant will close if electricity markets do not recover.

This marks the first of several procedural notifications Exelon will make in the coming months to inform regulators, grid operators and state agencies of the plant retirements.

Exelon announced plans to close the plants earlier this month, given the lack of progress on Illinois energy legislation. The Clinton Power Station in Clinton, Ill., will close on June 1, 2017, and the Quad Cities Generating Station in Cordova, Ill., will close on June 1, 2018.

“We worked for more than two years to find a solution, but now it is time to take the necessary steps to retire the plants,” said Chris Crane, Exelon president and CEO. “We are committed to working with all stakeholders to ensure the plants are shut down in a responsible, safe and transparent way.”

Quad Cities and Clinton have lost a combined $800 million in the past seven years, despite being two of Exelon’s best-performing plants.

Employees will safely operate the facilities until the retirement dates, with staff transitions expected within six months after retirement. Exelon employs nearly 700 workers at Clinton and 800 workers at Quad Cities.

Retiring these stations will have a significant economic and environmental impact on the region. The plants support approximately 4,200 direct and indirect jobs and produce more than $1.2 billion in economic activity annually. A state report found that closing the plants would increase wholesale energy costs for the region by $439 million to $645 million annually.

Exelon will continue to work with stakeholders on passing the Next Generation Energy Plan that is critical to the state’s environment and economy.

While these needed policy reforms may come too late to save some plants, Exelon is committed to working with policymakers and other stakeholders to advance an all-of-the-above plan that would promote zero-carbon energy, create and preserve clean-energy jobs, establish a more equitable utility rate structure and give customers more control over their bills.