N.J. Stat. § 48:9A-11: Project approval, stipulations.

6. a. No later than 90 days after receiving a stipulation pursuant to subsection e. of section 5 of this act, the board, after consultation with the Division of Rate Counsel, in, but not of, the Department of the Treasury, and after providing public notice of the proposed order and an opportunity for written comment by interested members of the public for a period of 30 days, shall issue an order approving the project, provided the board finds that the stipulation terms ensure each of the following conditions:

(1) all anticipated project costs are necessary and justified, and cost estimates are as accurate and realistic as current information permits;

(2) the entity proposing the project demonstrates financial integrity and sufficient access to capital, including a loan or loan guarantee from the United States Department of Energy or Department of Commerce covering all or a portion of construction costs, sufficient to support a reasonable expectation of project completion;

(3) the proposed RCC structure distributes the risks and rewards of the project between ratepayers and the qualified project entity in a just and reasonable manner;

(4) the RCC structure will not impose costs on New Jersey electric customers that are unreasonable or excessive, whether considered independently or in relation to customers’ overall bills;

(5) the baseline threshold results in a net increase in nuclear energy made available to the PJM Reliability Pricing Model capacity market, the Fixed Resource Requirement, or any other procurement program operated by PJM, as appropriate, equal to greater than 50 percent of the project’s rated output;

(6) there is a net benefit to ratepayers;

(7) any energy offtake agreement shall not provide a per megawatt-hour price for electricity lower than the RCC price set in the final board order, as may be adjusted pursuant to subsection e. of section 6 of this act, unless the energy buyer has contributed equity capital or will assume construction risk for the proposed project such that the energy buyer’s total cost contribution per megawatt-hour of contracted output, calculated over the term of the RCC, equals or exceeds the RCC price, including any board authorized adjustment; and

(8) any additional criteria established as part of the board’s order granting provisional qualification pursuant to subsection g. of section 4 of this act have been met.

b. In evaluating the reasonableness of the proposed RCC price and schedule, the board shall consider:

(1) projected electrical output and anticipated market prices over the anticipated life of the project, including a forecast of electricity revenues from the sale of energy to the grid and capacity derived from the project;

(2) anticipated revenues from RCC sales;

(3) the projected return of market revenues to New Jersey ratepayers over the RCC term, including any merchant exposure assumed by the project developer or profit sharing if market revenues exceed a specified level;

(4) the verified total construction cost estimate;

(5) additional project funding and financing sources, including any energy offtake or co-location arrangement;

(6) the net cost impact on New Jersey electric customers; and

(7) the proposed commercial operation date.

c. If the board is considering more than one qualified project, the board shall consider the ratepayer impact of the qualified projects in totality, and even if each qualified project independently may result in affordable rates to ratepayers, if the cumulative impact of more than one qualified project is unaffordable to ratepayers, the board shall not approve of a subsequent project.

d. If the board does not find that the conditions of this section are satisfied, the board shall issue an order setting forth the basis for its determination. Within 60 days of the order, board staff, the chief executive officer of the authority, and the qualified project entity may submit a revised stipulation addressing the board’s concerns, which the board shall consider under the same standards set forth in this section, including all public notice requirements. The provisional qualification status of the project shall remain in effect during the renegotiation period, notwithstanding the time limits in subsection g. of section 5 of this act.

e. A qualified project entity may petition the board for modification of the final board order, including to seek an increase of verified total construction costs or due to a change in State law or regulation. The board may, upon consent of the authority’s chief executive officer, after consultation with the Division of Rate Counsel, in, but not of, the Department of the Treasury, and an opportunity for the public to be heard, grant such a petition upon finding that the requested modification was reasonably unforeseeable, is necessary to preserve the project’s continued financial viability, will not impose an unreasonable burden on ratepayers, and that the project entity will maintain the project’s economic development and workforce commitments. Any proposed modification that would increase the RCC price, extend the RCC term, reduce the share of market revenues returned to ratepayers, or otherwise materially increase the net cost to ratepayers shall additionally require: (1) an opportunity for written comment by the Division of Rate Counsel and by interested members of the public not less than 30 days prior to any board action; and (2) an express finding by the board, supported by substantial evidence, that the modification is necessary and in the public interest and that there is still a net benefit to ratepayers. For the purposes of this subsection, “change in State law or regulation” means any change that imposes a moratorium on the construction or operation of the qualified project or imposes regulatory requirements that, considered together, significantly increase the total construction cost of the qualified project, as projected at the time of the change in law, provided that the qualified project entity has attempted to mitigate the effects of the change in law to the maximum extent reasonably practicable.

f. Before entering into any agreement after preliminary qualification to sell electricity to a co-located energy user or to any end user through a direct power purchase agreement, the qualified project entity shall obtain board approval. Approval of any such agreement shall include a requirement that some percentage of revenues of any direct power purchase agreement be returned to ratepayers pursuant to paragraph (2) of subsection d. of section 7 of this act.

g. A board order issued pursuant to this section shall not be subject to change without the joint consent of the board, the chief executive officer of the authority, and the qualified project entity.

L.2026, c.42, s.6.