The aging Indian Point nuclear power plant will close ahead of schedule, New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo announced in a speech Monday.
Cuomo said in his remarks at 1 World Trade Center in Manhattan that an agreement was reached with the nuclear plant's operator, Entergy, to shut down the Westchester County facility by 2021, 14 years earlier than required under federal re-licensing terms. Under the deal, one of the plant's reactors will close by April 2010 with the other by April 2021.
The Democratic governor emphasized that he has tried to shut the 55-year old plant in Westchester County since he was first elected attorney general in 2002 due to safety concerns. The plant in Buchanan, N.Y. supplies around quarter of the power supply in Westchester and nearby New York City, which Cuomo says will be made up for through new energy sources and transmission upgrades.
"Nuclear power can be a useful bridge as we transition to renewables there is no doubt," he said, adding that Indian Point is too close to densely populated areas.
"It will close at no cost to the state," he said during what the governor's office describes as the first in a series of six regional state of the state addresses this week. "Our plan identifies sources of replacement power and transitions workers to new jobs."
Cuomo said in a statement released before the speech that Entergy's previously agreed upon payments in lieu of taxes provided to impacted municipalities and school districts will continue through 2021 and then be "gradually stepped down" at a negotiated level. The state also plans to work with local governments to address "potential revenue shortfalls." A 2014 Moody's Investors Service report noted that the Hendrick Hudson Central School District received 31% of its operating revenues from Indian Point.
