The troubled Crystal River nuclear plant owned by the country’s largest electricity company will close permanently, according to a Florida Today report.
Charlotte, N.C.-based Duke Energy will reportedly refund $835 million insurance payout issued after costly repairs to the facility proved faulty.
The company said it could take up to 60 years to decontaminate and dismantle the site. Duke Energy's subsidiary Progress Energy Florida operates the plant; however it was shut down in 2009 after a concrete containment building cracked during a maintenance and upgrade project.
In 2011 new cracks were discovered in the repaired areas and in other parts of the containment buildings. The decision to permanently shutter the nuclear plant came after Duke Energy decided it would not invest $1 billion and $3.4 billion estimated to fix the plant.
"We believe the decision to retire the nuclear plant is in the best overall interests of our customers, investors, the state of Florida and our company," Duke Energy Chairman and Chief Executive Jim Rogers said in a statement.
Customers will not see refunds that would compensate them for higher bills Progress Energy passed because of higher-priced replacement electricity not produced by the nuclear plant until Florida utilities regulators weigh in.
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