Wiscasset selectmen have begun meeting with lawyers about the town’s tax deal with Maine Yankee, town officials confirmed. A closed-door session Tuesday night, ahead of the open board meeting, lasted about an hour.

Recent word from Maine Yankee spokesman Eric Howes, that the spent nuclear fuel from the former nuclear power plant will likely remain in Wiscasset for decades to come, has led to the discussions with the town’s lawyers, Town Manager Marian Anderson said. Since the fuel storage could run past the agreement’s expiration, the town needs to look at how to proceed, she said.

When the agreement was approved, the spent fuel was expected to leave town sooner than it now appears it will, Anderson said. “So this is uncharted territory.”

Howes updated the board on fuel storage in an open session on Feb. 3. The federal government is still working out how it will fulfill its obligation to take the waste, he said. Howes expressed support for selectmen’s interest in writing a letter encouraging the federal government to remove the waste.

The deal between the town and Maine Yankee ends with the 2022 tax year, according to a copy of it. The agreement addresses property taxes and impact fees.

The lawyers, Peter Murray, who town officials said worked on the agreement, and town attorney Sarah McDaniel had been on Tuesday’s draft agenda to discuss next steps regarding the spent nuclear fuel storage. Following the executive session, town officials said the item would be moved to the board’s April 7 meeting.

Another executive session on the matter was planned for 6 p.m. April 7, prior to the open meeting at 7 p.m.

The new discussions on the decade-old deal were not prompted be anyone having raised issues with it, Selectmen’s Vice Chairman Ben Rines Jr. said in a telephone interview Friday.

“Not in the least,” he said.