Duke nuclear plant costs could top $3 billon: study

By Cassandra Sweet 

Completing repairs necessary to restart Duke Energy Corp.'s DUK +0.03% Crystal River nuclear power plant in Florida could cost as much as $3.43 billion, according to a study released Monday. 

Duke, which assumed ownership of the plant when it acquired Progress Energy earlier this year, hired a group of consultants to evaluate how much it might cost to fix and restart the plant, which has been shut for about three years. 

The report, by Zapata Inc., found that Progress Energy's initial plan to fix the plant would likely cost about $1.49 billion. That compares to Progress's estimate that repairs would cost between $900 million and $1.3 billion. The consultants predicted that if more extensive work is required, under a "worst-case scenario," the total repair bill would likely be $3.43 billion. 

The problems at the Crystal River plant emerged as a key issue in Duke Energy's decision to dismiss former Progress Energy Chief Executive Bill Johnson from his position as Duke CEO after the companies completed their $26 billion merger in early July. 

Duke's board dismissed Mr. Johnson because he withheld information, such as the rising cost of repairs at the Crystal River plant, Duke lead director Ann Gray told North Carolina regulators in July. 

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