Holtec International has given the public another chance to learn all about the upcoming restart of the Palisades nuclear power plant with an open house held on Tuesday.
The plant is on track to come back online in the fourth quarth of this year, and people curious about details gathered at Holtec’s Joint Information Center in Benton Harbor to ask questions of staff. Company spokesperson Nick Culp told us they had some young people asking about job opportunities. Others asked about operational aspects of the restart, while others didn’t know there is a nuclear power plant in their area and wanted details.
Culp says not only is the Palisades restart going to be a boost to the Southwest Michigan economy, but it has broader implications.
“This is also more about the U.S. reasserting itself as a global leader in nuclear power and showing the world that something like this can happen,” Culp said. “And it’s a great example of just because something has never been done before doesn’t mean it can’t be done.”
Culp says they’ve got about 580 staff on site, and they’re still hiring. Holtec talent acquisition specialist Ashley Couch told us there are plenty of roles to fill.
“We have all types of positions from nuclear operations to security to we have a lot of administrative roles, regulatory assurance positions,” Couch said. “So all of our positions are listed in our new career site.”
Couch said Palisades isn’t using any AI to handle hiring, so if you apply, you’ll deal with a real person. Check the website for more information.
As far as the funding side of the restart, Culp told us Holtec has received $300 from the state of Michigan, while it just completed its fourth disbursement from a $1.5 billion federal loan guarantee. So far, federal draws have totaled about $250 million. Culp added the feds are quite diligent about making sure all draws are for legitimate restart-related expenses.
Once fully operational, Palisades will generate 800 megawatts of baseload power. That’s enough to serve more than 800,000 homes.
