New York billionaire John Catsimatidis said his firm Red Apple Group is looking to make “green” energy affordable by developing a new breed of small nuclear reactors — and the company has hired a seasoned energy executive to lead the effort.
The $7 billion conglomerate — which owns the Gristedes and D’Agostino’s grocery chains, as well as WABC 770, fossil fuel and real-estate businesses — also owns United Nuclear Group, which said Wednesday it’s looking to roll out small modular reactors throughout the US and beyond.
To supervise the rollout, the company said it has appointed Bob Percopo — a former longtime executive of American International Group’s Global Marine and Energy Division — as its new chief operating officer.
“Bob Percopo has deep experience as an executive in infrastructure, energy, power, and project finance projects in North America and throughout the globe,” Catsimatidis said in a press release obtained by The Post.
“He is an expert in the nuclear power industry and will be an effective leader in our nuclear energy business,” Catsimatidis added.
The reactors, according to the Department of Energy, are a “safe, clean and affordable nuclear power option” often used to supply energy to isolated areas or places with limited space that can’t support a larger power unit.
United Nuclear Group’s will emit the standard frequency of 60 Hertz with a maximum output of 300 megawatts — enough to power the average American home for roughly 1.2 months.
Representatives for UNG and Red Apple did not immediately respond to The Post’s request for comment.
The announcement is part of Red Apple’s push to wade further into nuclear energy.
“The future of energy in this country is not going to be windmills and solar cells,” the self-made billionaire told The Post earlier this year. The elder Catsimatidis said he is now focused on the “next generation of energy,” which he said “will be small modular reactors that power our submarines and aircraft carriers.”
Catsimatidis also noted at the time that Red Apple has “signed up” two states that want nuclear reactors. A potential deal could cost between $10 billion and $20 billion, he said, which would necessitate the family bringing in investors.
Earlier this year, Catsimatidis promoted his 30-year-old son to president and chief operating officer of Red Apple.
John Catsimatidis Jr., previously chief investment officer at the Manhattan-based company, was promoted after working for the family business for the past 12 years.
His outspoken dad, however, remains chief executive and chairman of Red Apple, which Catsimatidis launched 56 years ago with his first Red Apple supermarket on the Upper West Side.
Catsimatidis purchased 77 WABC radio in a $12.5 million cash deal in 2019.
Last year, the 75-year-old — who boasts a net worth of $4.1 billion — also mulled buying beleaguered CNN from its corporate parent, Warner Bros. Discovery, though he stayed tight-lipped on how much he’d pony up for the network.
