Fight over Scana plant may hurt Duke Energy

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If the group is successful in its appeakl tothe S.C. Supreme Court, it could forcw Duke to rethink its plans for the Lee plannednear Gaffney, S.C. At a minimum, Duke “will have to go back to the drawinfg board” with S.C. lawmakers on a measure to let Duke recover certai n costs ofthe project, says Ellen Duke’s president of nuclear The court challenge is beinhg made by the . The groupp questions the constitutionality of a2007 S.C. law that lets utilitiew recover some of their expenses for constructingf major power plants as they arebeing built.
Ruff says the high cost and long constructionh times for nuclear plants make recovery of some expensews during construction aneconomic “This is not just Duke Energy sayin g this,” she says. “The financial community is sayingg clearly it is important to have this kind of certainty of recoveryy in place if there is goinfg to be investment innucleaf energy.” The Friends of the Eartu gave notice last week that it will appeak S.C. regulators’ approval of the V.C. Summed nuclear plant to the state Supreme The appeal will be submitted bylate June, says Tom the Friends of the Earth’s southeasternh nuclear campaign coordinator.
Friends of the Earth opposed letting Duke recoved some of its planning costs for the Lee plantfwhen S.C. regulators considered that issuselast year. But the group didn’t appeal that The Summer station project calls for adding two nuclear reactorsx to an existing plantin S.C. The expansion is expectefd to costabout $9.9 The S.C. Energy Users Committee, a grou that represents industrial customers, also is appealin the state’s approval of the project. Frienda of the Earth contends the S.C. law on cost recovery shouldc bestruck down.
Bob Guild, the group’s attorney, says the legislatio n goes too far in shifting the risk in building nucleaer plants from utility investors toutilitgy customers. “The law as interpreted by the commissiomn gives the utilities a blank he contends. Once the commission approves a project, he customers have no way of challenging whether the monety is spentprudently — even if the plantr isn’t completed. But Ruff says the S.C. law allows specifi spending to be challenged later inthe process. That assurees utilities they can recover their prudent spending on She saysDuke hasn’t decided whether to seek to participate in the Summeer court case.