Companies that want to assist in decommissioning the retired Fort Calhoun Station nuclear power plant have until Dec. 28 to submit requests for proposals.
Staff at Omaha, Neb., Public Power District staff told its board of directors that three companies are expected to submit bids, but did not identify the companies. The board met as a committee of the whole on Tuesday in preparation for a formal full meeting on Thursday.
The utility closed the 43-year-old, single-reactor plant near Omaha in October 2016. Last month, the board voted to have OPPD remain in charge of decommissioning the plant rather than turning the work over fully to another entity. However, it will take assistance from a hired contractor.
The OPPD originally intended to place the single-reactor facility into “safe storage,” or SAFSTOR, after it shut down. The site would have been monitored and maintained until the late 2050s before active decommissioning began. Decommissioning would have ended in 2066.
In October, the board opted to go with active decommissioning to trim costs, with most of the work for be done by 2028. Accelerated decommissioning has an estimated cost of almost $1 billion, compared to nearly $2.5 billion for the original approach.
Nuclear Regulatory Commission records show that as of Dec. 31, 2016, Fort Calhoun had $286 million in its decommissioning trust fund, with the NRC estimating $931 million would be needed. In 2018, OPPD reported $439 million in its decommissioning trust fund.
