Palisades Nuclear Plant Set for Pre-Year-End Restart Amidst Safety Scrutiny, Energy Secretary Visits 'Zombie Reactor'

The shuttered Palisades nuclear plant in Michigan is slated for a potential restart before the year concludes, despite a history of safety incidents, according to US Energy Secretary Chris Wright. Secretary Wright recently toured the Holtec International-owned reactor, which ceased operations in 2022 but is now undergoing a restart process. The Palisades plant has emerged as a significant symbol for the US nuclear energy sector, which is experiencing a resurgence partly driven by the substantial electricity demands of data centers.

During a press conference on Thursday at the reactor site, Secretary Wright informed reporters, "It will be 800MW of additional, reliable and secure energy." He also took a swipe at the Democratic Party, stating, "This is a reversal of the stuff Democrats did for years, doing everything they can to stand in the way of energy production and the contrast could not be more stark."

However, the proposed restart faces considerable opposition. Kevin Kamps, executive director for the environmental advocacy group Don't Waste Michigan, criticized the move, referring to the reactor as a "zombie reactor." He expressed grave concerns, stating, "Once they restart this zombie reactor, all bets are off." Kamps further elaborated, "They are playing radioactive Russian roulette on the Lake Michigan shore, wasting billions of dollars of state and federal taxpayer money to do so, and they are risking a Chornobyl- or Fukushima-scale catastrophe, putting in peril the Great Lakes, the Great Lakes State, and beyond." Michael Keegan, another director at Don’t Waste Michigan, dismissed the public relations efforts as a "whitewash."

Secretary Wright's visit occurred shortly after an incident that amplified the concerns of those opposing the plant's restart. In September, a nuclear fuel assembly was tipped over during a refuelling process. The US Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) confirmed that no radiation was released. Holtec International described the recovery as a "remarkable demonstration of technical ingenuity and precision manufacturing."

This incident adds to the plant's troubled history. An NRC report from 2012 highlighted issues with the work culture at the plant, suggesting that safety concerns were frequently disregarded. In 2016, when Entergy owned the facility, security staff were suspended for failing to adhere to fire prevention protocols. More recently, in October 2025, a worker at Palisades sustained minor injuries after falling from a refuelling bridge into a pool of water.

In a letter to Holtec this month, following an inspection, the NRC indicated that while Palisades generally maintains a safety-conscious work environment, a "chilled work environment" was identified within the supply chain and quality assurance departments. The NRC noted that employees in these departments "are hesitant to raise safety concerns using all available avenues without fear of retaliation."

Patrick O’Brien, Holtec's director of government affairs and communications, previously assured The National that Holtec is "taking actions to address these issues and will continue our work to maintain and strengthen a healthy safety-conscious work environment." He emphasized that safety is paramount and that the reactor "will return to service when all required work is complete and all federal requirements and industry standards are met."