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Opponents of nuclear power have long argued that in addition to the inherent safety threat of nuclear power, the idea that the nuclear energy is "cheap" has been a bogus claim made by the industry -- a fact they say is proved by the private sector's unwillingness to invest in plant construction without enormous taxpayer-backed loan guarantees and subsidies by state and federal government.
Now, analysis by the Associated Press suggests that the combined overruns from projects in Georgia, Tennessee, and South Carolina could top $2 billion. Much of that cost would fall to rate-payers and taxpayers.
In the case of the new Vogtle reactor being built in Georgia -- where overruns are in the hundreds of millions -- a representative of a nuclear watchdog group told the Atlanta Journal Constitution that the utility companies were misleading about their declarations to be on time and on budget.
"They promised us this time it would be different. They were going to streamline it; they were going to get it organized in advance so that it would go smoothly," said Mark Cooper, a senior research fellow for economic analysis at the Vermont Law School's energy and environment institute.
The AP's review of pending projects found:
Earlier this year, US Senator Bernie Sanders (I-VT), along with Taxpayers for Common Sense president Ryan Alexander, wrote: "without federal liability insurance and loan guarantees, no one would ever build a new nuclear plant. Whether you support nuclear energy or not, we should all be able to agree that with record debt, we cannot afford to continue to subsidise this mature industry and its multibillion-dollar corporations."
"If the nuclear industry believes so fervently in its technology, then it and Wall Street investors can put their money where their mouth is. Let's let them finance it, insure it, and pay for it themselves," they said.
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Opponents of nuclear power have long argued that in addition to the inherent safety threat of nuclear power, the idea that the nuclear energy is "cheap" has been a bogus claim made by the industry -- a fact they say is proved by the private sector's unwillingness to invest in plant construction without enormous taxpayer-backed loan guarantees and subsidies by state and federal government.
Now, analysis by the Associated Press suggests that the combined overruns from projects in Georgia, Tennessee, and South Carolina could top $2 billion. Much of that cost would fall to rate-payers and taxpayers.
In the case of the new Vogtle reactor being built in Georgia -- where overruns are in the hundreds of millions -- a representative of a nuclear watchdog group told the Atlanta Journal Constitution that the utility companies were misleading about their declarations to be on time and on budget.
"They promised us this time it would be different. They were going to streamline it; they were going to get it organized in advance so that it would go smoothly," said Mark Cooper, a senior research fellow for economic analysis at the Vermont Law School's energy and environment institute.
The AP's review of pending projects found:
Earlier this year, US Senator Bernie Sanders (I-VT), along with Taxpayers for Common Sense president Ryan Alexander, wrote: "without federal liability insurance and loan guarantees, no one would ever build a new nuclear plant. Whether you support nuclear energy or not, we should all be able to agree that with record debt, we cannot afford to continue to subsidise this mature industry and its multibillion-dollar corporations."
"If the nuclear industry believes so fervently in its technology, then it and Wall Street investors can put their money where their mouth is. Let's let them finance it, insure it, and pay for it themselves," they said.
# # #
Opponents of nuclear power have long argued that in addition to the inherent safety threat of nuclear power, the idea that the nuclear energy is "cheap" has been a bogus claim made by the industry -- a fact they say is proved by the private sector's unwillingness to invest in plant construction without enormous taxpayer-backed loan guarantees and subsidies by state and federal government.
Now, analysis by the Associated Press suggests that the combined overruns from projects in Georgia, Tennessee, and South Carolina could top $2 billion. Much of that cost would fall to rate-payers and taxpayers.
In the case of the new Vogtle reactor being built in Georgia -- where overruns are in the hundreds of millions -- a representative of a nuclear watchdog group told the Atlanta Journal Constitution that the utility companies were misleading about their declarations to be on time and on budget.
"They promised us this time it would be different. They were going to streamline it; they were going to get it organized in advance so that it would go smoothly," said Mark Cooper, a senior research fellow for economic analysis at the Vermont Law School's energy and environment institute.
The AP's review of pending projects found:
Earlier this year, US Senator Bernie Sanders (I-VT), along with Taxpayers for Common Sense president Ryan Alexander, wrote: "without federal liability insurance and loan guarantees, no one would ever build a new nuclear plant. Whether you support nuclear energy or not, we should all be able to agree that with record debt, we cannot afford to continue to subsidise this mature industry and its multibillion-dollar corporations."
"If the nuclear industry believes so fervently in its technology, then it and Wall Street investors can put their money where their mouth is. Let's let them finance it, insure it, and pay for it themselves," they said.
# # #