Exelon announced all of its Illinois nuclear plants – including the facility in Cordova – cleared the transition capacity auction for the 2016-2017 planning year.
The transition capacity auction supplements the supply that already cleared the regular PJM capacity auction for that same year.
That announcement means the company has a buyer for the energy produced at the plant, and it allows them to plan for that year. Without that confirmed buyer, the company must sell its energy on the less-predictable open market, and that makes fiscal planning more difficult.
During the annual auction, energy companies bid to supply power to a major grid that covers 13 states and the District of Columbia.
The good news for the 2016-2017 year is tempered by an uncertain future.
Exelon previously announced that the Quad Cities plant did not clear the PJM capacity auction for 2018-2019. The transition capacity auction for 2017-18 was taking place the week prior to Labor Day 2015.
Exelon officials say wholesale electricity prices are at their lowest in ten years.
Following the auction, and by the end of September, Exelon was expected to decide whether the Cordova plant might experience a possible short-term or long-term shutdown.
