Indian Point’s two operational pressurised water reactors – unit 2 and unit 3 – were closed down in 2020 and 2021 respectively. The premature closure of the units, which both had several years of their operating licences left, followed on from a settlement agreement between the plant’s then-owner Entergy and the State of New York. The plant – which is also home to unit 1, which shut down in 1974 as the newer units came on line – was then sold to subsidiaries of Holtec International for decommissioning.
The two reactors once supplied a quarter of the region’s electricity, but their closure has contributed to higher electricity costs and increased strain on New York’s electric grid, Lawler said during a visit to the former Indian Point Energy Center with Wright.
New York Governor Kathy Hochul last year announced plans to reinvest in new nuclear capacity in upstate New York, Lawler said, but there is “no reason” that Indian Point could not be brought back online in the same way that Holtec International is bringing the Palisades plant in Michigan back into service.
“I’m calling for the rebuilding and reopening of Indian Point Energy Center and for an all-of-the-above energy strategy,” Lawler said. “That means supporting nuclear energy, approving critical infrastructure like natural gas pipelines, and ensuring communities like Buchanan are not left behind after decades of helping power our state.”
“Across the Northeast, including in New York, Americans are paying some of the highest electricity prices in the country because political leaders blocked critical infrastructure and prematurely shut down power plants that deliver affordable, abundant power,” Wright said, actions which had “driven up electricity costs for millions of Americans”.
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Chris Wright’s visit to the Indian Point Energy Center (Image: Energy Secretary Chris Wright/X)
Both Lawler and Wright pointed to Holtec International’s ongoing project to restart the Palisades nuclear power plant in Michigan. Palisades, a single-unit pressurised water reactor, ceased operations in May 2022 and was defuelled the following month. The unit’s licence was transferred from previous operator Entergy Nuclear Operations to Holtec Decommissioning International, LLC and Holtec Palisades, LLC, for decommissioning, but in late 2023, Holtec began the process of obtaining the licensing approvals needed to return the plant to operational status.
“In a few months in Michigan, the first-ever restart of a nuclear power plant is going to happen,” Wright said. “And it’s a similar story. It was just a foolish political decision, blowing with the winds of the day that we’re going to shut down our nuclear power plant.”
