Seabrook Station on the New Hampshire Seacoast. (Photo by Dan Tuohy / NHPR)
The energy company Avangrid is accusing NextEra Energy, owners of the Seabrook nuclear power plant, of sabotaging the development of a transmission line meant to bring Canadian hydropower onto the New England grid.
In a lawsuit filed last month, Avangrid alleges NextEra Energy tried to prevent the New England Clean Energy Connect from coming online to protect their profits, including by delaying an upgrade to the Seabrook nuclear power plant’s circuit breaker.
That breaker protects Seabrook from problems on the power grid. Avangrid says a study required for their project showed the Seabrook breaker was almost at capacity and needed to be updated before any major power sources were added to the New England grid.
Avangrid says NextEra refused to accept their offer to pay for upgrades to that equipment, despite knowing it was outdated.
“NextEra was willing to risk a physical incident at its nuclear facility by refusing to upgrade its outdated breaker for the anticompetitive purpose of keeping electricity competition out of Massachusetts and to maintain its unique hold on the ISO-New England grid,” lawyers for Avangrid wrote in the lawsuit.
The breaker was upgraded this November, the lawsuit says.
Sarah Abramson, the director of the local nuclear safety advocacy group C-10, said the circuit breaker is no longer a concern for public or environmental health. But, she said, NextEra’s alleged actions warrant a closer look.
“Avangrid’s claims against NextEra are serious, and I hope that if there is compelling evidence that exists showing NextEra’s willful neglect of a critical safety component, that the Nuclear Regulatory Commission and our elected officials demand a thorough, independent investigation, and that the findings are made public,” Abramson said.
The lawsuit outlines other actions NextEra took to allegedly delay the transmission line, including filing challenges to the project throughout permitting processes and funding voter referendums aimed at scuttling the project, violating Maine’s campaign finance laws.
Avangrid argues NextEra’s’s actions violated federal and state antitrust laws and cost them $350 million while delaying the clean energy transition.
“The hydropower supplied by NECEC would displace the sale of more expensive (and highly polluting) power generated from NextEra’s fossil fuel plants, as well as reduce the prices paid to NextEra for output at its nuclear plant,” the lawsuit says.
The company asked for a jury trial to resolve the case.
NextEra did not respond to specific questions about Avangrid’s allegations when contacted Monday for comment. In an email, NextEra spokesperson Chris McGrath said they are reviewing the complaint and “look forward to vigorously defending against these claims in court.”
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