By Guy Page

The Vernon Selectboard tonight is scheduled to hear plans by a Texas company to redevelop the former site of the Vermont Nuclear Power Plant. 

Under New Business, the published agenda reads: Planning Commission-NorthStar/Power Transitions Proposed Site Development; Battery Storage, Data Center and mini nuclear power plant

On May 27, Power Transitions of Texas told the town planning commission about its exploration of future redevelopment opportunities for the former VY plant, which delivered 620 MW of carbon-free power, much of it to Vermont, before the Vermont Senate declined to relicense the plant under pressure from renewable power supporters, residents concerned about a tritium leak, and advocates opposing longterm storage of spent nuclear fuel. The plant, forced to sell electricity at unusually low prices on the open ‘spot market,’ closed shortly thereafter. 

During a recent update to town officials, PowerTransitions representatives said the company’s long-term vision centers on small modular reactor (SMR) technology, while its near-term focus is battery storage projects. 

The company noted that a previous analysis found the Vermont Yankee site suitable for a data center and said such facilities could help stabilize the electric grid because of their constant power demand. Officials also discussed the importance of securing New England grid interconnection approvals, with application windows opening in October and closing in November, as a key factor in determining what types and sizes of projects could be built. PowerTransitions said it would provide emergency preparedness training and compensation to the town if battery storage is developed and noted that noise from data centers can be mitigated through the use of panel walls.

The VY site is next door to a grid-level ‘switchyard’ that received large amounts of generated electricity and transmitted it via the New England grid.