Austin Wheelock | ooc@oswegocounty.org
In late October, Operation Oswego County attended Constellation Energy’s annual State of the Plant at the Nine Mile Point clean energy campus in the town of Scriba.
Constellation holds this event annually to inform elected officials and community leaders about the current and future initiatives taking place at Nine Mile Point I, II and FitzPatrick nuclear stations.
This year, potentially more than ever, it was important to hear the information and be a part of the conversation.
Who is Constellation Energy?
Constellation Energy is America’s leader in clean energy development, creating more than 10% of all carbon-free energy across the U.S. — nearly as much as the next two competitors combined.
To understand the scale of its clean power generation capacity, it is enough to power the equivalent of 15 million homes.
A large part of that clean generation comes from nuclear energy which emits no greenhouse gases, making it a clean power source. Although the greatest share of its generated power comes from nuclear, Constellation also manages and operates hydro, solar and wind assets as part of its diverse clean energy holdings. Constellation’s nuclear fleet produces more than 19,000 megawatts of clean electricity at 23 nuclear plants across the U.S., with four of the plants being in Upstate New York.
Nuclear energy’s impact on local economy
Constellation employs more than 1,400 employees in Oswego County, making it the county’s largest private employer. Additionally, every two years on average the nuclear plants need refueling and maintenance, which supports hundreds of additional jobs in the local trades and specialty contractors.
Oswego County taxing authorities receive more than $44 million a year from Constellation Energy in payment in lieu of tax payments that support local school districts as well as the local and county government. Constellation Energy is also known as a strong contributor to local philanthropic efforts on both the corporate and employee level, giving to dozens of local charities.
The Constellation nuclear fleet is a significant economic driver for New York state due to the thousands of megawatts of power provided to the electric grid, which captures the attention of new and expanding businesses. Businesses rely on steady, around-the-clock uninterrupted power to properly operate in which nuclear energy provides. The $100 billion Micron investment in Onondaga County is the most noteworthy of those, choosing Central New York over other competing locations across the county, due in large part to the access to abundant reliable power. With diverse power generation sources, Oswego County is an energy powerhouse, with more than 5,500 mw of generation capacity, with approximately half of that coming from nuclear.
NYS policy for nuclear and future growth potential
Less than 10 years ago, there were plans to close the James A. FitzPatrick nuclear plant when its then owner, Entergy, announced its closure due to economic reasons. About 600 local high-paying jobs would be lost. At the time natural gas prices were at historic lows, which made it difficult for other power generation sources to compete long-term in the market. New York state, along with a coalition of nuclear and clean energy advocates, helped to bring about the New York’s Zero Emissions Credit program. This program quantified the economic benefit of nuclear on the economy and environment, making it economically viable to continue to operate the nuclear plants in Upstate New York.
Since that time, the state has become a leader in the transition to a clean energy economy, making aggressive goals to fully transition the state’s energy grid to 100% carbon-free energy by 2040. New York made this law in 2019 through the Climate Leadership and Community Protection Act. To complete that, New York would need to retain all existing clean energy assets and add somewhere between 20 and 40 gigawatts of additional clean energy to the state’s electrical grid, which is the power generation equivalent of 15 to 30 Nine Mile Point II reactors.
There’ve been various advocacy groups making the case to transition all new energy generation to renewable sources such as solar and wind. However, this proposal may not be feasible due to various considerations, including limitations in available space in proximity to existing power infrastructure. For example, to generate the same amount of solar energy as the four Upstate New York nuclear plants that currently generate 3,325 MW of stable and reliable energy, you would need more than 120,000 acres of installed solar panels plus battery storage. This is due to the intermittence of solar and wind that only produce power approximately 25% of the time compared to nuclear that operates at 92% of the time. The inconsistent sunlight and wind levels experienced throughout the year directly influence the energy output generated by solar panels and wind turbines, respectively. It doesn’t line up when power demand is at its highest. Instead, it is key to have a diverse portfolio of clean energy sources of baseload power nuclear and hydro combined with intermittent power from solar and wind to ensure affordability, reliability and availability.
Looking forward to the future of nuclear in New York, several very exciting things could lead to new nuclear asset growth around the state, which Oswego County is uniquely equipped to support. In the fall of 2024, New York state and the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority (NYSERDA) hosted an energy summit in Syracuse, where a significant amount of time was spent discussing the role that new nuclear generation could play in providing new generation capacity to New York. From that event, NYSERDA has now put out a request for information for companies capable and interested in developing and deploying advanced nuclear technologies in New York state.
What does this all mean?
What implications does this have for the future of nuclear energy in New York and the future of the nuclear plants in Oswego County? While the primary focus is on maintaining the current nuclear fleet, New York has the opportunity to once again take the lead in finding a balance between achieving carbon reduction targets and fostering economic development through the exploration of innovative nuclear technologies. As Nine Mile Point 1 and Ginna approach the expiration of their operating licenses in 2029, Constellation intends to seek license renewals to prolong the lifespan of the plants for an additional 20 years.
Positioned with the essential infrastructure, skilled workforce and existing nuclear licenses, Oswego County is in a unique position to embrace the emergence of new nuclear technology and power generation.
For these things to happen it’s critically important that the existing plants be kept financially viable for the long-term. We should also collectively advocate to our elected leaders that we support nuclear for all of the reasons mentioned including the local and regional economic impacts, the low environmental impact and to support the clean energy goals for New York now and into the future.
Austin M. Wheelock, certified economic developer (CEcD), is the executive director of Operation Oswego County, Inc. For more information, call 315-343-1545 or visit www.oswegocounty.org.
