Costs of Duke nuclear plant to remain secret

Duke Energy won't have to reveal the cost estimate for a proposed nuclear plant any time in the near future, North Carolina regulators ruled this morning.

The N.C. Utilities Commission agreed with the Charlotte electric utility that the estimated cost of a proposed nuclear plant is a "trade secret" under North Carolina law.

Duke Energy officials argued in a public hearing today that revealing the cost estimates now would give tactical advantage to vendors and contractors during sensitive negotiations.

Nuclear opponents have asked state regulators in North and South Carolina to force Duke to disclose its cost estimate, contending the public should not be deprived of this vital information on a decision of such magnitude to the state.

South Carolina regulators last week kept the public disclosure request alive in that state by asking Duke to explain which cost information should be shielded from public disclosure and why. South Carolina regulators are expected to rule on the matter in May.

With multibillion-dollar nuclear costs surging in the past several years, the timing of public disclosure of nuclear costs has turned into a contentious issue of strategic advantage both to electric utilities that want to build new nuclear plants as well as to nuclear critics who want to defeat the efforts.

Duke's estimated cost is available to lawyers and public officials in North Carolina who sign a confidentiality agreement.

John Runkle, the lawyer for N.C. Waste Awareness and Reduction Group, along with other organizations, has obtained the information on condition of confidentiality. Runkle told the N.C. Utilities Commission the groups want to make the cost public for their membership, for the media and for state legislators.

Duke officials say the anti-nuclear groups want to drive up costs and kill the project.

"If Duke is requested to disclose the cost today, it will undermine the company's ability to get the lowest cost for its customers," said Duke attorney Lawrence Somers. "In light of the testimony today, the public advocacy groups want the cost of this plant to go up."

The nuclear plant has been proposed in Cherokee County in South Carolina, just south of the North Carolina border. North Carolina customers would use most of the energy generated by the nuclear plant's two reactors and would also pay about 68 percent of the total cost.

The cost of the new nuclear plant, which will be paid for by the company's 2.3 million customers in the Carolinas, won't be made public for at least six months or as long as Duke Energy continues negotiating final prices with vendors and contractors. Duke started negotiating terms and prices in 2005 and expects the plant to start operating in 2018.

"This is a 13-year project," said Duke spokeswoman Paige Sheehan. "We're early in terms of major milestones."

Progress Energy, based in Raleigh, recently revealed that it estimates that a new nuclear reactor would cost $7 billion in Florida. The company is also considering building new reactors at the Shearon Harris nuclear plant in Wake County, but has not revealed cost estimates for that project.