NPPD, Entergy mutually agree to end contract

COLUMBUS, Neb. -- Nebraska Public Power District and Entergy have mutually agreed to end their Support Services Agreement regarding NPPD’s Cooper Nuclear Station.

The agreement has been in place since late 2003. While Entergy provided some personnel for the plant, along with other support services as part of the arrangement, NPPD has maintained ownership of and responsibility for the operations. NPPD plans to continue operating Cooper Nuclear Station, located near Brownville.

Cooper Nuclear Station is NPPD’s largest generating unit and the largest single source of carbon free generation in the state. The station, which began commercial operations in 1974, has the capacity to serve approximately half of the annual energy requirements for NPPD’s retail and wholesale customers with reliable and carbon free electricity. It employs over 600 individuals in southeast Nebraska.

Cooper Nuclear Station was the last plant outside of Entergy’s regulated utility business for which Entergy had contractual obligations.  

“This was a mutual decision and is in the best interests of both utilities,” according to a joint statement from Tom Kent, NPPD’s President and CEO and Christopher Bakken, Executive Vice President and Chief Nuclear Officer, Entergy Nuclear.

“NPPD has had an excellent relationship with Entergy. Its people and processes have played a key role in helping Cooper Nuclear Station achieve improved performance. Over the past two decades, we have built up a tremendous amount of experience and skill within our ranks. We have reached a point where we can meet the high expectations for excellence in the commercial nuclear industry with our team at Cooper Nuclear Station, and as is common in the industry, we can also use supplemental assistance from others in the nuclear industry as needed,” Kent said.