Associated Press - March 16, 2010 5:24 PM ET

BATON ROUGE, La. (AP) - Two Louisiana power utilities of Entergy Corp. have asked state regulators to allow them to continue early development of a new nuclear generator - although no decision has been made on whether to actually construct it.

Entergy Louisiana and Entergy Gulf States Louisiana are studying the possibility of a second nuclear generator at the River Bend Power Plant at St. Francisville. The filing with the Louisiana Public Service Commission does not ask for permission to actually build the reactor.

The Entergy units said the PSC request would preserve a schedule under which a new nuclear unit could be generating power as early as 2024, if the new plant proves feasible.

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