Entergy pushes to get spinoff of reactors done

NEW YORK STATE - Entergy Corp. has filed a proposal with utility regulators in New York State in a push to get approval of its long-running plan to spin off some of its nuclear power plants into a separate company.

Under a plan announced in late 2007, Entergy would spin off six nuclear reactors involved in the wholesale power business into a separate publicly traded company called Enexus Energy Corp.

Enexus would control five nuclear operations: Pilgrim Nuclear Station near Plymouth, Mass.; the James A. Fitzpatrick station in Oswego County, N.Y.; two units at the Indian Point Energy Center in Westchester County, N.Y.; Vermont Yankee in Vernon, Vt.; and Palisades Power Plant in Covert, Mich.

The plants involved in the proposed spinoff all sell non-regulated power on the wholesale market, where prices can skyrocket as utilities try to cover shortfalls in peak-demand periods.

The spinoff has been approved by the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, the Nuclear Regulatory Commission and the Internal Revenue Service. In addition to New York, Entergy is awaiting a decision from state utility regulators in Vermont.