* Maybe they should should just sell the plants and let somebody else try to make some money off of them…

Exelon Generation announced today that it intends to retire its Byron Generating Station and Dresden Generating Station in fall 2021, resulting in the loss of four nuclear generation units that together supply clean, zero-emissions energy to more than four million homes and businesses in northern Illinois. Byron, located just outside Byron, Ill., will close in September 2021, and Dresden, located in Morris, Ill., will close in November 2021.

Dresden is licensed to operate for another decade and Byron for another 20 years. Together, they employ more than 1,500 full-time employees and 2,000 supplemental workers during refueling outages, most from local union halls. The plants pay nearly $63 million in taxes annually to support local schools, fire, police and other services. The two plants supply 30 percent of Illinois’ carbon-free energy and are essential to meeting the state’s goal to achieve 100 percent clean energy.

“Although we know in our heads that shutting down the uneconomic Illinois plants is necessary to preserve even more jobs elsewhere, our hearts ache today for the thousands of talented women and men that have served Illinois families for more than a generation and will lose their jobs because of poorly conceived energy policies,” said Christopher Crane, president and CEO of Exelon. “But we are only about a year away from shutdown and we need to give our people, the host communities, and regulators time to prepare.”

“We recognize this comes as many of our communities are still recovering from the economic and public health impacts of the pandemic, and we will continue our dialogue with policymakers on ways to prevent these closures,” said Crane. “To that end, we have opened our books to policymakers and will continue to do so for any lawmaker who wishes to judge the plants’ profitability.”

“We agree with Governor Pritzker that policy reform is urgently needed to address the climate crisis and advance Illinois’ clean energy economy, and we support the objectives of the Governor’s recent energy principles,” added Crane. “That’s separate from today’s announcement to retire these two zero-carbon nuclear plants, which was not a decision made lightly and is one that has been in the works for some time.”

Despite being among the most efficient and reliable units in the nation’s nuclear fleet, Dresden and Byron face revenue shortfalls in the hundreds of millions of dollars because of declining energy prices and market rules that allow fossil fuel plants to underbid clean resources in the PJM capacity auction, even though there is broad public support for sustaining and expanding clean energy resources to address the climate crisis. The plants’ economic challenges are further exacerbated by a recent FERC ruling that undermines longstanding state clean energy programs and gives an additional competitive advantage to polluting energy sources in the auction. As a result of these market rules, Exelon Generation’s LaSalle and Braidwood nuclear stations in Illinois, each of which house two nuclear units and together employ more than 1,500 skilled workers, are also at high risk for premature closure.

Studies have shown that when nuclear plants close, plants that burn fossil fuels operate much more often, increasing harmful carbon and air pollution, especially in disadvantaged communities. In January 2019, Illinois committed to reducing greenhouse gas emissions consistent with the targets set in the Paris climate agreement. While the state is currently at roughly 85 percent progress towards the 2025 goal, if the four economically challenged nuclear plants (Dresden, Byron, Braidwood and LaSalle) prematurely retire, Illinois will drop to only 20 percent of the way toward the goal. Electric sector emissions in Illinois will increase by 70 percent.

Despite these consequences, Exelon Generation must act now to prevent further shortfalls and give its employees, contractors and community partners time to prepare for the loss of jobs and tens of millions of dollars in taxes, donations and local purchasing. The notification also is necessary to give PJM enough time to conduct an analysis confirming that retiring Byron and Dresden will not cause a shortage of generating capacity in northern Illinois during times of peak demand.

In the days and weeks ahead, Exelon Generation will file a deactivation notice with PJM and inform key stakeholders and regulatory agencies of the retirements. In addition, the company will:

Make official shutdown notifications to the Nuclear Regulatory Commission within 30 days;
Terminate capital investment projects required for long term operation of Dresden and Byron; and
Scale back the refueling outages scheduled for this fall at Dresden and Byron. The move will result in spending reductions of $50 million and the elimination of up to 1,400 of the more than 2,000 mostly union jobs typically associated with the two refueling outages.

While retirement preparations are underway, employees will continue to operate the plants at world-class levels of safety and operational excellence until they are decommissioned. Exelon Generation will work to place affected plant employees at other Exelon facilities or help them transition to positions outside the company, wherever possible.

…Adding… Press release…

In response to Exelon’s decision that it is closing two nuclear power plants, State Senator Michael E. Hastings (D-Frankfort), who chairs the Senate Energy and Public Utilities Committee, released the following statement:

“It’s truly unfortunate that Exelon has announced two plant closures during the middle of a pandemic. The negative economic impact of these closures cannot be understated. The Senate Energy and Public Utilities Committee has been committed to working on legislation and consumer assistance since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic and we remain committed to working with the men and women of organized labor and all stakeholders to find solutions to secure the future of clean energy in Illinois.”

…Adding… Press release…

Illinois PIRG director Abe Scarr made the following statement in response:

“The era of Exelon holding Illinois’ energy policy hostage must end.

“Exelon’s threats underline the importance of Gov. Pritzker’s call for Exelon to provide certified costs in an independent financial report before securing new subsidies.

“Any additional support for Exelon’s aging, expensive power plants must come within a comprehensive plan to transition Illinois to 100 percent renewable energy, including firm closure dates for nuclear power plants.”

* Related…

* CEJA pushed to back burner by COVID

*** UPDATE 1 *** Illinois Senate President Don Harmon agrees with me, apparently…

Independent market monitors believe these plants can be profitable. I intend to look into legislative options including requiring these plants be put up for sale before they can be shuttered. We owe it to these workers and communities to see if someone else can successfully run these assets.

*** UPDATE 2 *** Jordan Abudayyeh…

First, let’s remember that Exelon already receives a ratepayer-funded subsidy of $235 million dollars per year to run nuclear plants in Illinois. While they couch their messaging in their desire for a clean energy future, their primary purpose is to dramatically increase those subsidies on behalf of their shareholders. Like the Governor said earlier this year, transitioning to a clean renewable energy economy is a top priority for his administration, but the utility companies will not write the legislation to get the state there. The Governor has been clear that establishing a program to reward clean energy sources and phase out dirty energy is a critical part of any comprehensive energy framework, but that framework needs to be developed based on a transparent understanding of the economics involved with the nuclear plants. Any financial benefit to the nuclear plants must be right-sized and protect Illinois ratepayers.

We have seen these threats before, and this time Exelon’s threats will need to be backed up by a thorough and transparent review of their finances – including why the profits of the company as a whole cannot cover alleged operating losses at a few plants. The administration looks forward to working with lawmakers and stakeholders to pass legislation centered on consumers and the climate that creates and retains good paying, union jobs in communities across the state.

…Adding… Illinois Clean Jobs Coalition…

We have said it before and we will say it again. We can and must combat climate change in a way that puts thousands of people back to work statewide, especially in communities of color, without raising electric rates, hiking taxes or giving a bailout to Exelon and fossil fuels.

…Adding… Illinois Chamber…

“The Illinois Chamber was disappointed to learn that Exelon has once again threatened to close two of their nuclear facilities next year — plants that it has acknowledged continue to be profitable — unless they receive another bailout funded by ratepayers,” said Illinois Chamber President and CEO Todd Maisch. “Exelon is demanding a bailout without completely opening its books to a truly independent third party. PJM’s Independent Market Monitor should conduct a thorough audit.

“The Chamber does understand, however, that the closure of power plants can have a significant economic impact on employees and the communities where those facilities are located, and that’s why we support Senate President Pro Tempore Bill Cunningham’s Senate Bill 3837, which includes a number of tools to mitigate these impacts. For instance, SB 3837 would create the Community Impact Mitigation Fund to mitigate the impacts of lost property taxes and jobs, and decreased economic development as a result of closures.

“The Chamber will continue to work with policy makers and energy stakeholders to craft a balanced energy policy that ensures reliable and affordable electricity.”

…Adding… US Sen. Richard Durbin…

“The closure of Byron and Dresden Generating Stations will have significant impacts on the local economy and Illinois workers. In the days and months ahead, I am committed to fighting for these jobs and helping to create additional good paying jobs in these communities, and creating a clean energy economy with policies like my America’s Clean Future Fund Act.

“Unfortunately, for the past three and a half years, President Trump and Congressional Republicans have pursued policies that hurt nuclear energy and the thousands of good paying jobs that they support. The Trump Administration passed a rule to nullify Illinois’ clean energy program that supported nuclear power plants like Byron and Dresden. And Congressional Republicans supported the Trump Administration’s efforts to overturn the Obama-era Clean Power Plan, which helped support nuclear energy.

“I encourage Congressman Kinzinger and the entire Illinois Congressional Delegation to work with me to undo the disastrous policies put into place by the Trump Administration and Congressional Republicans, which have hurt these plants and employees, and work to pass smart legislation that supports clean energy jobs.”

…Adding… Illinois AFL-CIO…

The Illinois AFL-CIO, representing the thousands of working men and women and their families and communities who would be directly affected, is deeply disappointed and concerned about today’s announcement by Exelon of planned closures of the Byron and Dresden nuclear plants in northern Illinois.

Our state has many economic challenges today. The coronavirus pandemic has only made those challenges more real, and working families are struggling across Illinois.

Energy is an important part of our lives. When we turn the lights on, we expect them to come on and stay on at a reasonable price. The nuclear energy at these and other Illinois plants is critical to the safe, reliable and affordable power supply we all enjoy today. Not only would these plant closures devastate the communities and families employed there directly, we all will pay a steep price from losing access to the high-quality, affordable power the plants produce.

We cannot afford to let these nuclear plants close. We stand ready to work on a clean energy policy for Illinois that preserves these critical jobs, and supports the affordable and reliable energy we have today and need for a successful tomorrow.”

…Adding… Rep. Adam Kinzinger on Facebook…

This right here is what happens when Illinois corruption is allowed to run wild.

This morning’s announcement that the Byron and Dresden nuclear power plants will be closed is absolutely devastating to our communities, and yet another casualty of Mike Madigan’s ComEd bribery scandal. When an industry is told it has to pay-up to exist, the corrupt win and the rest of us lose. It didn’t even end up being Pay-to-Play, this was Pay-to-Die.

I have fought tirelessly for many years at the federal level to save and preserve our nuclear fleet, which offers affordable, safe, and clean energy and thousands of fantastic jobs here at home. But at the same time, on the state level, Mike Madigan’s Machine cared more about draining the industry through bribes than saving these anchors of our communities — not to mention their goal of a zero carbon future is impossible without nuclear energy.

This is an absolute disgrace, and my first step will be demanding that the $200 million in fines collected by the DOJ from the scandal be directed to the communities and families who are the casualties of this disgusting corruption. After that, it’s time, once and for all, to take out Madigan and the Cronies who screwed us while enriching themselves.