Report: Nuclear plant a pricey plan

WASHINGTON — A new study suggests that nuclear power plants such as the one being considered for Piketon end up costing far more than originally projected and are not a cost-effective way to combat global warming.

The report, released yesterday by the University of Vermont, concluded that electricity generated at a new generation of nuclear power plants would cost 12 to 20 cents per kilowatt hour compared with renewable-energy costs of 6 cents per kilowatt hour.

The report predicted that building 100 new nuclear power plants could cost as much as $4 trillion more over the life of those plants than simply using more renewable energy and adopting energy conservation measures.

Mark Cooper, an economist and senior fellow at the university’s Institute for Energy and the Environment, said nuclear power plants could thrive only with heavy government subsidies, in the form of taxpayer money or larger monthly electricity bills.

“Nuclear reactors can only be built as wards of the states,” Cooper said. “Nuclear reactors are a very expensive way to lower carbon emissions,” which are thought to cause global warming.

Columbus Dispatch