Gov. Newsom: Maybe it was a mistake to shut down California’s last nuclear plant – By John Sexton (Hot Air) / April 29, 2022
You may not remember it, especially if you don’t live here in California, but the state had rolling blackouts back in 2020. The culprit was a heat wave which meant lots of people were using air conditioners to keep indoor temperatures under control. And as the sun went down and the state’s solar power supplies dried up, there weren’t enough back up supplies to replace it.
After that debacle California regulators decided to let some existing natural gas power plants stay open a few extra years. But the state had already decided several years earlier to shut down the last remaining nuclear plants which would cease to operate when their current licenses expired rather than try to extend those licenses.
Pacific Gas and Electric will shutter its two Diablo Canyon nuclear units in 2024 and 2025, respectively, when their current operating licenses are set to expire or need to be renewed by the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC). Despite the NRC indicating that these units are well run and among the best in the country, and the utility indicating that they are able to withstand earthquakes, tsunamis and flooding, Pacific Gas and Electric will shutter them and replace them with renewable energy and efficiency programs.
Diablo Canyon produces 9 percent of California’s electricity and 20 percent of Pacific Gas and Electric’s power, which is a lot of power to be replaced by solar and wind units that are not controllable by the system operator.
