Last week the NRC held meetings to seek public comments on their drafted environmental report regarding Florida Power & Light’s plan to add 2 nuclear reactors at Turkey Point in south Florida. So far the NRC has found no environmental effect that would preclude licenses for the reactors.

Florida Power & Light first proposed adding these reactors 6 years ago. Now in a major step in the process, the NRC reached a preliminary environmental recommendation that the licenses should be issued.

The company says the project will cost $12 to $18 Billion and is critical to satisfying the power demands of Florida’s growing population.

The new reactors would generate about 1,100 megawatts each, enough power combined to meet the energy needs of about 750,000 households, FPL spokesman Peter Robbins said.

FPL backs nuclear power partly for its fuel-cost savings. Over 60 years, Robbins said, the two new reactors would save $170 billion in fuel costs compared with plants that run on natural gas.

In addition, the two new reactors would avoid emissions of more than 250 million tons of carbon dioxide over a 40-year period, compared with natural-gas plants, he said.