The Tennessee Valley Authority has granted an extension to developer Franklin L. Haney to complete his $111 million purchase of the unfinished Bellefonte Nuclear Power Plant in Alabama.
Haney said Friday he appreciates TVA’s work with him in transferring the 1,300-acre riverfront site in Hollywood, Alabama, where TVA began building the nuclear power plant in 1974. Haney said he is confident he will soon close on the plant purchase and ultimately complete the twin-reactor plant to generate power at a competitive price to attract plenty of customers.
TVA spokesman Jim Hopson said TVA has extended the agreement with Haney’s Nuclear Development LLC from the original deadline next Wednesday to Nov. 30 to finalize the purchase. The 16-day extension was requested by Haney, who two years ago emerged as the highest bidder for buying the assets of the mothballed, unfinished plant in Northeast Alabama.
Franklin Haney, of the Franklin Haney Company, speaks with Tom Decosimo before the event. The Electric Power Board of Chattanooga unveiled its new 100 kilowatt, 4-hour, vanadium redox flow battery made by UniEnergy Technologies of Mukilteo, Washington on September 22, 2017.The purchase agreement Haney signed on Nov. 14, 2016 initially gave the former real estate developer two years to complete the purchase of the Bellefonte assets from TVA. Under the purchase agreement, Haney made a $22 million down payment for the unfinished reactors and the supporting cooling towers, switch yards and office facilities at Bellefonte.
Haney said he has the other $89 million to complete the Bellefonte acquisition, but a number of legal and regulatory issues are pushing back the completion of the deal for a couple more weeks.