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Insights > Clean, carbon-free energy - Nuclear helps power Louisiana’s bright future
Clean, carbon-free energy - Nuclear helps power Louisiana’s bright future
10/18/2019
If you have spent any time with me, I am sure you have heard me talk about Entergy Louisiana’s clean, affordable and reliable power. It is a competitive advantage that helps our Louisiana communities prosper. But, are you aware of how nuclear power helps us achieve that goal?
In 2018, Entergy Louisiana avoided emissions of carbon dioxide equal to the amount released in a year by more than 2.5 million passenger cars. How? With the safe, reliable, emission-free operations of our River Bend and Waterford 3 nuclear plants, operated by hundreds of dedicated and highly-trained nuclear professionals.
Nuclear energy is also the only source of clean energy that can produce the large amounts of electricity needed around-the-clock to power Louisiana homes and businesses
More than 90 percent of the state’s carbon-free power comes from the company’s two nuclear plants. This benefits the environment, including the air we breathe, by helping to avoid emissions that contribute to climate change and public health issues.
In addition to generating 16 percent of Louisiana’s electricity, the nuclear plants play a vital role in meeting our customers’ expectations for clean and affordable energy. Across the country, nuclear energy generates 20 percent of our nation’s electricity and provides 56 percent of our emission-free power, making it an essential partner for renewable energy.
Louisiana benefits from nuclear power in many other ways. Waterford 3 and River Bend operated more than 88% of the time (over the course of the last three years) and produced more than 17.3 million megawatt-hours of electricity in 2018 powering homes, businesses and communities throughout the state.
For Entergy Louisiana, our nuclear plants also are about community. In 2018, River Bend and Waterford 3 contributed more than $225,000 in charitable contributions to local nonprofit groups and civic organizations. And our employees volunteered hundreds of hours supporting initiatives to strengthen schools and improve our environment.
Plant employees also help drive the local economies. The plants support 1,500 direct jobs plus hundreds of additional contractors and supply chain partners during scheduled refueling and maintenance outages. Employees and their families spend millions of dollars with local businesses, further investing in local communities.
Most importantly, our nuclear operations are about safety. Working with our regulators and industry peers, we continue to implement best practices that enhance our ongoing commitment to safe, reliable, event-free operations.
In December, The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission renewed the licenses for Waterford 3 and River Bend for an additional 20 years paving the way for Entergy Louisiana to continue providing safe, secure, affordable, reliable and clean energy.
Nuclear energy plays a critical role in maintaining the diverse supply of fuels used to generate electricity in the state of Louisiana. Fuel diversity contributes to the reliability, resiliency and affordability of the energy grid.
Nuclear energy also plays a critical role in Entergy’s leadership in reducing carbon emissions, including meeting our new goal of reducing our emissions intensity to half what it was in 2000 by 2030. By further reducing our impact on the environment, Entergy is helping meet industry and global sustainability goals that help ensure a bright future for all of us.
I am proud of the hard work our entire nuclear team accomplishes every day, on every task, and that we continue delivering safe, reliable and clean energy to our customers as we work together to become the premier utility focused on our stakeholders of customers, employees, communities and owners.
