Far from junk, old wind turbines represent an untapped reservoir of rare earths waiting to be exploited, argues Luke Wray, senior vice president at Paladin Envirotech, a technology-lifecycle and critical-materials recovery company
By David M. Zimmer, NorthJersey.com
New Jersey is betting on nuclear power to help meet growing electricity demand. But even if every reactor envisioned under a new state law is built, it would cover only about half of the state’s current power shortfall.
Gov. Mikie Sherrill’s Power NJ Act, signed on July 13, sets a target of at least 1,100 megawatts of new nuclear generation, roughly the output of a large reactor. But even if the full amount is approved and built, it would generate enough electricity to offset only about 52% to 55% of the state’s current power shortfall, based on a NorthJersey.com analysis of state data.
The analysis provides one of the first measures of how far the state’s headline nuclear goal would go toward solving a problem Sherrill has made central to her energy agenda: New Jersey produces far less electricity than it uses. Even under the law’s most optimistic scenario, the state would have to import nearly half of the power needed to close that gap.
The law starts a competitive process for developers but does not guarantee that the full number will be approved or built.
If it were, the new reactors could generate between 8.7 million and 9.2 million megawatt-hours per year at the operating rates cited by the Sherrill administration.
New Jersey’s latest in-state generation gap was nearly twice that size.