The plant's owner, Entergy, made the extension announcement on Sept. 28, along with Consumers Energy, which purchases power from the 811-megawatt plant. The Michigan Public Service Commission approved only part of the amount that Consumers Energy requested to help it buy out of the rest of its contract with Entergy. Consumers Energy said it could find cheaper power elsewhere and wanted to end the power purchase agreement before the end of the contract.

"Today's announcement that the Palisades nuclear plant will not be closing until spring 2022 is good news for workers at the plant and their families," said Valerie Brader, executive director of the Michigan Agency for Energy MAE. "But that does not mean that local officials can put off making difficult decisions about how to prepare for life without the nuclear plant and the tax dollars it pumps into the local economy."

Located near South Haven, the Palisades Power Plant employs about 600 workers and has been a part of the Van Buren County community since it began generating electricity in 1971. The plant generates 811 megawatts of virtually carbon-free electricity, enough to power more than 800,000 homes.

“We greatly appreciate the continued patience of our employees and the local community in Southwest Michigan throughout this regulatory process, and we will continue to focus on the plant’s safe and reliable operations,” said Charlie Arnone, site vice president and Entergy’s top official at Palisades. “Entergy will continue to make all necessary investments and maintain appropriate staffing, in accordance with strict licensing standards.”


Hurricanes trigger drop in U.S. jobs

The nation's unemployment rate dropped 0.2 percent in September to 4.2 percent, but the nation lost 33,000 jobs - the first month-to-month drop in employment in the last seven years.

That's the word from the U.S. Department of Labor, which released its monthly jobs report on Oct. 6.  The effects of Hurricanes Harvey and Irma certainly had a negative impact on the jobs numbers, the DOL said. 

In the construction industry, there was a minor increase in construction jobs in September, (+8,000).