ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (AP) — Two counties in southeastern New Mexico have joined the race to build an interim storage site to house spent nuclear fuel from the nation's reactors.
Officials from Lea and Eddy counties and Holtec International gathered Wednesday at the National Museum of Nuclear Science and History in Albuquerque to outline their plans.
The agreement between Holtec and the Eddy Lea Energy Alliance addresses the design, licensing, construction and operation of an underground storage site on 32 acres between the communities of Carlsbad and Hobbs.
Holtec President and CEO Kris Singh says the company expects to apply for a permit from the Nuclear Regulatory Commission within a year.
Some members of Congress have shown renewed interested in the mothballed Yucca Mountain project in Nevada. In West Texas, a private firm also has plans to build a temporary storage facility.