Governor Baker Statement on Closing of Pilgrim Nuclear Power Station

Governor Baker Statement on Closing of Pilgrim Nuclear Power Station

BOSTON – Today, Governor Charlie Baker issued the following statement after an announcement by parent company Entergy that Pilgrim Nuclear Power Station will close by June 1, 2019:

“Our Administration will work closely with Pilgrim’s leadership team and federal regulators to ensure that this decision is managed as safely as possible, and we will continue to work with ISO and the other New England Governors to ensure that Massachusetts and New England has the baseload capacity it needs to meet the electric generation needs of the region.  Losing Pilgrim as a significant power generator not only poses a potential energy shortage, but also highlights the need for clean, reliable, affordable energy proposals which my administration has put forward through legislation to deliver affordable hydroelectricity and Class-I renewable resources.  The closure of Pilgrim will be a significant loss of carbon-free electricity generation and will offset progress Massachusetts has made in achieving the 2020 greenhouse gas emission reduction goals, making it more challenging to hit these targets.  I look forward to working with the legislature to make our proposal for clean, base-load generation law, as it represents a diversified and balanced approach that will be needed to achieve the commonwealth's greenhouse gas goals.”