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Georgia nuclear power plant could be Solyndra redux, report says By Mark Clayton
Findings say the two-reactor $14 billion Vogtle plant is just one example of the US government not protecting US taxpayers well enough against the risks of federal loan guarantees to new nuclear power projects
The two-reactor $14 billion Vogtle plant being built in Georgia is seen as a test of the US nuclear industry's planned "renaissance" with a new nuclear reactor design and updated construction processes all aimed at cutting time and costs.
But two Massachusetts-based energy-consulting firms, Earth Track and Synapse Energy Economics, say the $8.3 billion in federal loan guarantees backing the project were crafted with excessively favorable financial terms for the recipient companies, weak federal oversight, and possible political interference in the loan-guarantee process.
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Officials for the Obama administration and Southern Company, the company that will operate the plants, say there's nothing improper going on.
In their report, Earth Track and Synapse say the documents reveal:
Under the category of "political interference," the report cites one e-mail from DOE staff revealed tight timelines to "move our first nuclear power deal forward." Other e-mails showed direct contact between Vogtle project borrowers and Secretary of Energy Steven Chu. And a 2010 e-mail from Jonathan Silver, then-executive director of loan programs at the US Department of Energy, noted that "We didn't deal with shaw" — the company slated to do much of the reactor construction — "The white house did."
The discussions represent "a potentially troubling blurring of financial risk review, political discussion, and potential modification of loan terms," the report says.
In a conference call, Mr. Koplow said there is no evidence of wrongdoing or any "smoking gun." But the e-mails do suggest, they say, that high level figures in the administration were in a position to exert political influence.
The Department of Energy was unable to respond by press time to a request for comment. But one administration official, speaking on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to speak to the press, said there's no impropriety in the documents.
"These are people who just don't like nuclear power," he says. "What they're doing is throwing out a buzz word, Solyndra, to get attention. Let's just throw out that word. They're throwing accusations out there, but these decisions were made on the merits by career officials. The idea that Secretary Chu would want to be monitoring this deal — there's nothing wrong with that."
Southern Company officials say the process is routine.
"Loan guarantees were developed to provide an incentive for new nuclear development in the U.S.," writes Tim Leljedal, a Southern Company spokesman in an e-mailed statement. "There continues to be constructive dialogue in the Vogtle 3&4 loan guarantee negotiations between the company and the Department of Energy. We are committed to financing options that will serve the best interests of our customers, and — as long as the terms and conditions of DOE loan guarantees serve those interests — we will continue pursue that option."
"Details of the ongoing negotiations remain confidential," he adds.
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© 2013, The Christian Science Monitor
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