"The Energy Department’s grant of $1.1 billion is the latest step that could keep the reactor in operation beyond its scheduled shutdown in 2025."
"California’s last nuclear power plant received a $1.1 billion federal grant on Monday as the state seeks to extend the plant’s operations — currently set to end in 2025 — to meet electricity demand at a time of intensifying climate events.
The Department of Energy awarded the funding for the Diablo Canyon Power plant to Pacific Gas & Electric, which owns the nuclear facility, to help cover the cost of continued power production. The federal money follows a $1.4 billion loan from the state last month that included the potential of being forgiven, though PG&E was expected to seek funds to repay it.
PG&E has yet to clear all of the needed regulatory requirements and licensing to keep the plant running, but Gov. Gavin Newsom of California and the Biden administration have consistently argued in support of Diablo Canyon’s operation and for nuclear power in general as a way to help decarbonize the electric grid.
The federal money is part of the Bipartisan Infrastructure Bill, which provided $6 billion for civil nuclear support at $1.2 billion per year for fiscal years 2022 to 2026."
