NEI president testifies on nuclear value before Ohio congress

Nuclear Energy Institute (NEI) President and CEO Maria Korsnick recently testified before the Ohio General Assembly’s Public Utilities Commission committee in favor of a proposed Ohio House bill that would provide zero-emissions credits to nuclear energy.

“I applaud the Public Utilities Committee for your consideration of House Bill 178,” Korsnick said. “This legislature has an opportunity to preserve these valuable assets for the benefit of these towns and the entire state.”

The bill could help preserve nuclear facilities by provide zero-emissions credits to electric utilities for nuclear energy generation. Similar bills in New York and Illinois halted the premature closure of several plants that will now operate for another decade.

Korsnick noted that nuclear facilities provide jobs and clean energy. She also said that when they close, they are replaced by dirtier fossil fuels in the generation mix.

“The downstream consequences of premature plant closures are dire and irrevocable,” Korsnick said. “Allowing well-run nuclear plants to close doesn’t help the communities that have grown up around them. It doesn’t make electricity more affordable for consumers. It doesn’t provide jobs for Ohioans, and it doesn’t support our energy system or national security.”

This was the third and final House hearing on HB 178, and the Senate also recently held a hearing on their version of the bill (SB 128).