Xcel CEO says nuclear power is key to cutting carbon
Xcel Energy Chief Executive Officer Ben Fowke said keeping nuclear power plants open is key for the utility to meet its goal to slash greenhouse gases.
The company, which pledged to cut carbon dioxide emissions 80 percent by 2030 and 100 percent by 2050, operates two reactors in Minnesota that will become increasingly vital as wind and solar expand, Fowke said during an interview Friday.
“An early retirement of those plants would totally set us back,” he said. “If you are shutting down your coal fleet, it’s pretty hard to shut down your nuclear fleet at the same time and still offer reliable power to customers.”
Xcel this week became the first major U.S. utility to pledge to fully phase out carbon. Wind and solar are cheap enough to compete with conventional electricity generation. Yet they can’t provide round-theclock power. Politicians and some environmentalists see nuclear plants — which don’t emit greenhouse gases — as an ideal complement. But reactors are struggling to make money and, in some cases, in danger of closing.
Low electricity prices, plus competition from natural gas and renewables plants are putting intense economic pressure on nuclear power plants. New York, New Jersey, Connecticut and Illinois have all begun offering support to reactors.
Xcel’s two nuclear power plants in Minnesota make up about 13 percent of the company’s power supply. State legislation that would have helped Xcel recover costs for the plants failed to pass this year. Fowke said the utility will file a plan with Minnesota regulators next year demonstrating that the reactors are necessary to hit its carbon goals.
“We do need regulatory and advocacy support for our nuclear fleet,” Fowke said.
Aside from its existing nuclear plants, Xcel will consider small, modular reactors, said Fowke, adding that the nascent technology has shown “some promise.” The company would also consider systems to capture and trap carbon dioxide from gas or coal plants and using hydrogen to generate electricity, he said.
“I can’t tell you exactly what technology will get us there,” Fowke said. “That’s one we will have to work on.”