Flawed Market Conditions Among Factors Forcing Early Closing of FitzPatrick Nuclear Plant

WASHINGTON, Nov. 2, 2015 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- The Nuclear Energy Institute's president and chief executive officer, Marvin Fertel, made the following comments about Entergy Corp.'s announcement today that it will retire the FitzPatrick nuclear energy facility no later than early 2017.

"The fact that the FitzPatrick nuclear energy facility in New York is the industry's fourth nuclear power plant to prematurely close due to uncorrected flaws in competitive electricity markets is alarming. It is clear that, despite providing reliable electricity and enormous environmental and economic benefits in upstate New York for more than 40 years, FitzPatrick's benefits are grossly undervalued and are not fully compensated.

"FitzPatrick powers more than 800,000 homes, employs 600 professional workers and drives more than $500 million in annual economic activity. It also prevents the emission of three million metric tons of carbon dioxide every year and constitutes 10 percent of the carbon-free electricity in New York. The facility could have provided these benefits for at least another two decades. The unnecessary loss of such a powerful, long-term economic and environmental asset in New York is a tragedy. We need state and federal policies that will help preserve these vital resources.

"The nuclear energy industry has been engaging with regulators and other leaders to communicate the wholesale market reforms that are needed. The biggest price for the loss of FitzPatrick will be paid by the hundreds of hard-working, highly skilled men and women who work at FitzPatrick, by local communities, and by the environment. The time is now for actions that will prevent more nuclear plants from closing."

The Nuclear Energy Institute is the nuclear energy industry's policy organization. This news release and additional information about nuclear energy are available at www.nei.org.