ATLANTA, Jan. 27 /PRNewswire/ -- Georgia Power and Southern Nuclear
Operating Company announced today the companies are pursuing the Westinghouse
AP1000 as the nuclear reactor technology for potential new nuclear units at
the Alvin W. Vogtle Electric Generating Plant. The companies said the Plant
Vogtle Early Site Permit (ESP) and Combined Construction and Operating License
(COL) applications will be based on the AP1000 design.
(Logo: http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20050216/CLW066LOGO)
Plant Vogtle, located near Waynesboro, Ga., is owned by Georgia Power,
Oglethorpe Power Corporation, the Municipal Electric Authority of Georgia and
the City of Dalton Board of Water, Light, and Sinking Fund Commissioners
(Dalton Utilities). The plant is operated for the co-owners by Southern
Nuclear. Both Georgia Power and Southern Nuclear are wholly-owned subsidiaries
of Southern Company.
"We are in discussions with Westinghouse that could lead to an eventual
purchase," said Jeff Wallace, vice president of Planning and Utility Relations
for Georgia Power. "We expect to need additional generation to meet our
customers' needs in 2015 and beyond. Nuclear power is becoming more and more
attractive as an option to meet these needs economically, reliably and with
low environmental impact."
Pursuing a specific reactor technology does not mean that the co-owners
have made a final decision to build new units. It does signify another step in
the process necessary to obtain permits should the co-owners decide that
expanding the nuclear fleet is the best option for meeting electricity needs.
"We believe the Westinghouse AP1000 is the best nuclear technology option
available at this time," said Louis Long, vice president of Technical Support
for Southern Nuclear. "Our decision comes after researching the next
generation of available nuclear reactors."
Long said the company prefers the Westinghouse AP1000 for numerous
reasons. "It is firmly grounded in proven Pressurized Water Reactor (PWR)
technology, and has been reviewed extensively by industry operators of current
Westinghouse PWRs," he said. "The AP1000 has dramatic improvements in design
achieved through simplified safety systems, and it sets a new standard in
safety. Westinghouse has received final Design Certification for the AP1000
from the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC), which allows plant developers to
proceed now with regulatory steps toward an ESP and a COL.
"In addition, the estimated capital cost for the AP1000 is expected to be
competitive," said Long. "Southern Nuclear has a lot of confidence in
Westinghouse technology, technical expertise and customer service. We have
used Westinghouse PWR technology to operate our nuclear units safely and
reliably for more than 25 years."
Both units at Plant Vogtle and both units at the Joseph M. Farley Nuclear
Plant use Westinghouse PWRs. Plant Farley, located near Dothan, Ala., is owned
by Southern Company subsidiary Alabama Power.
Southern Nuclear plans to file an application with the NRC for an ESP for
Plant Vogtle sometime this summer and file an application for a COL in 2008.
The streamlined licensing process for new nuclear units allows utilities to
seek regulatory approval at various stages. These are Design Certification,
the early approval of standard designs, which is obtained by reactor vendors
such as Westinghouse; and the ESP and the COL, which are obtained by the
owner-operators of the units. The ESP means that site approval is obtained
before the company decides to build, and the COL provides regulatory approval
for one license for building and operating the plant.
In addition to these and other permits, Georgia Power would need
certification approval of the Georgia Public Service Commission for any new
generation resource.
"With the increasing volatility in the gas and coal markets, it makes good
sense to consider nuclear power as an option to expand our generating fleet,"
said Wallace.
"The steps we are taking to evaluate potential new nuclear options are
prudent, sound and responsible," said Wallace. "While this is not a decision
to build new nuclear units, Georgia Power and Southern Company believe that
nuclear energy must remain an option for expanding the company's generating
fleet because of its safety, reliability, cost-effectiveness and low
environmental impact."
Georgia Power, headquartered in Atlanta, is the largest subsidiary of
Southern Company, one of the nation's largest generators of electricity.
Georgia Power is an investor-owned, tax-paying utility, serving customers in
57,000 of the state's 59,000 square miles. Georgia Power's rates are below the
national average, and its 2 million customers are in all but six of Georgia's
159 counties.
Southern Nuclear, headquartered in Birmingham, Ala., is a wholly owned
subsidiary of Southern Company. Southern Nuclear operates all of Southern
Company's nuclear units, including Plant Farley, Plant Vogtle and the Edwin I.
Hatch Nuclear Plant located near Baxley, Ga. Hatch also is jointly owned by
Georgia Power, Oglethorpe Power Corporation, the Municipal Electric Authority
of Georgia and Dalton Utilities.
With more than 4 million customers and nearly 39,000 megawatts of
generating capacity, Atlanta-based Southern Company (NYSE: SO) is the premier
super-regional energy company in the Southeast and a leading U.S. producer of
electricity. Southern Company has more than 500,000 shareholders, making its
common stock one of the most widely held in the United States. Visit the
Southern Company Web site at http://www.southerncompany.com.
SOURCE Georgia Power
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Related links:
http://www.georgiapower.com
http://www.southerncompany.com
Photo Notes:
NewsCom:
http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20050216/CLW066LOGO
AP Archive: http://photoarchive.ap.org
PRN Photo Desk, photodesk@prnewswire.com
CONTACT:
Sandi G. Robinson of Southern Nuclear,
+1-205-992-5312, or +1-205-992-5395, or sgrobins@southernco.com ;
or John Sell, +1-404-506-7676, or +1-800-282-1696, or
jlsell@southernco.com , for Georgia Power
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