Georgia Power executives predict the country’s first nuclear power plant expansion in more than 30 years will be just weeks away from the Vogtle plant’s reactor, which will generate electricity that will power its customers’ energy needs for decades to come.
Georgia Power and its parent Southern Co. are celebrating the imminent completion of the first of two nuclear power plants, which are expected to be operational by June, as the utility reduces its reliance on fossil fuels in favor of cleaner forms of energy. But the $30 billion snakebite nuclear build That will provide enough electricity for 500,000 homes and businesses is one reason 2.7 million taxpayers will pay $500 more in electricity bills annually through 2025, according to clean energy advocates.
Additional charges may be added to Georgia Power’s bills this summer once Vogtle’s Unit 3 is operational and state regulators decide to do so the drop in fuel prices pushed down by the state’s largest electric utility. If state regulators grant the request, Georgia Power’s residential customers could pay about $16 more per month for three years starting in June.
According to Georgia Power officials, Vogtle remains on track to complete Unit 3 in May or June and complete the final phase in early 2024 — 12 years after the company unveiled the expansion.
A new milestone was reached at Vogtle on Monday when Unit 4’s reactor maintained normal pressure levels and temperatures during a test run.
“The energy and enthusiasm at the Vogtle site and throughout our organization is high as Unit 3 is in the final stages of launch testing and Unit 4 is making progress toward safe fuel loading,” said Kim Greene, Chairman, President and CEO of Georgia performance.
“It’s incredible that these new units will provide our state with zero-emission energy for the next 60 to 80 years, and that’s thanks to the dedication of the teams on site to building these units, and doing it right,” said Greene.
Meanwhile, state regulators are scheduled to hold hearings Tuesday and Wednesday on Georgia Power’s request for reimbursement of excess fuel costs after inflation pushed up natural gas prices last year.
Bryan Jacob, director of the Southern Alliance for Clean Energy’s solar program, said tariffpayers shouldn’t be forced to foot the entire bill because Georgia Power grossly underestimated fuel prices. The additional cost comes on top of further hikes expected for Vogtle over the next two years. Construction costs for the Vogtle expansion are expected to increase to more than $30 billion, up from an original estimate of $14 billion in 2012.
New nuclear units at Georgia Power’s Vogtle plant, about 30 miles southeast of Augusta, are finally nearing completion after years of delays and billions of dollars in cost overruns. John McCosh/Georgia Recorder
“Georgia Power makes resource decisions, but feepayers bear the risk if the utility’s fuel cost projections are wrong,” Jacob said. “To add insult to injury, Georgians are already facing the eighth-highest electricity bills in the country.”
The five-member Georgia Public Service Commission is scheduled to vote on Georgia Power’s drop in gas prices on May 16. Under current state law, commissioners have little control over how much they are reimbursed, unless utility charges are illegal or negligent.
Georgia Power spokesman John Kraft said the company is trying to balance past and future fuel costs by spreading payments over three years instead of two.
“At Georgia Power, we know that energy costs are an important part of every family’s and every company’s budget,” he said.
The volatile energy market is one reason the Clean Energy Alliance and Sierra Club of Georgia are pushing for more investment in solar and other fuel-free energy sources.
The renewable energy company’s CEO Brent Alderfer, who is an expert witness for the two nonprofits on the fuel rate case, estimates that Georgia Power would save $1 billion in fuel costs over the next three years if solar powered 10% of its power grid would make up. However, Georgia Power successfully lobbied the PSC to limit a rooftop solar program to 5,000 homes.
The Southern Environmental Law Center estimates that by 2025, household electric bills will increase by an average of about $45 across six incremental increases: $16 for base-rate electricity, $13 for Plant Vogtle, and $16 for fuel recovery.
Georgia Power increased its residential customer bills by $3.60 in January as part of a $1.8 billion rate hike that pays to upgrade the power grid, clean up toxic coal ash and shut down coal-fired power plants and expand its clean energy portfolio.
Georgia Power estimates that the cost of coal ash disposal and environmental compliance could ultimately exceed $9 billion.
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