ATLANTA, July 3 /PRNewswire/ -- Co-owners of the Vogtle Electric
Generating Plant today announced their intent to maintain their
proportionate share of ownership in the proposed Units 3 and 4. As
co-owners of two existing units at Plant Vogtle, the utilities had the
rights to participate in the new Vogtle units but were required to make a
final commitment by July 2, 2008.
(Logo: http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20050216/CLW066LOGO )
Earlier this year, Georgia Power, acting for itself and for Plant
Vogtle's co-owners (Oglethorpe Power, Municipal Electric Authority of
Georgia [MEAG Power] and Dalton Utilities), entered into an Engineering,
Procurement and Construction contract (EPC) with Westinghouse Electric
Company LLC and The Shaw Group Inc.'s Power Group, for the development and
construction of two AP1000 nuclear units.
Oglethorpe Power, MEAG Power, and Dalton Utilities have informed
Georgia Power that they will maintain the following existing ownership
shares in the new units: Oglethorpe Power, 30 percent; MEAG Power, 22.7
percent; and Dalton Utilities, 1.6 percent. Georgia Power's proportionate
share is 45.7 percent.
"Plant Vogtle's co-owners represent communities throughout Georgia, and
we believe these collective decisions reflect the strong support our
co-owners share in the proposed units," said Mike Garrett, Georgia Power
president and CEO.
"Through our participation in this planned expansion of Plant Vogtle,
Oglethorpe Power and our Member EMCs are taking action to help ensure that
Georgians have the electricity they need for the future," said Tom Smith,
president & CEO of Oglethorpe Power.
"The participants' level of cooperation and diligence as discussions
moved forward was exemplary and underscores the value of joint action,"
states MEAG Power president and CEO, Bob Johnston. "They are to be
congratulated for visionary leadership on behalf of the citizens they
serve." Based upon contractual commitments made by 41 of the participants
for which it provides wholesale electric power, MEAG Power will retain a
22.7 percent ownership interest in two new nuclear units.
"Although Dalton Utilities is the smallest co-owner participating in
this project at 1.6 percent, our evaluation of all the factors that impact
this project and our experience with Vogtle Units 1 and 2 lead us to
conclude that it is an excellent investment in energy supply that will
serve our customers well into the future," said Don Cope, Dalton Utilities
president and CEO.
Georgia Power submitted its proposal to the Georgia Public Service
Commission May 1, 2008 as a self-build option in connection with the
company's plan to meet increased electric demand in 2016-2017. The
company's self-build nuclear proposal will be reviewed by the Georgia PSC's
Independent Evaluator before the company submits a final recommendation to
the Georgia PSC on August 1, 2008 for approval. A final certification
decision is expected in March 2009.
If certified by the Georgia PSC and licensed by the Nuclear Regulatory
Commission (NRC), the two Westinghouse AP1000 units, with a capacity of
1,100 megawatts each, would be constructed at the Vogtle Electric
Generating Plant site near Waynesboro, Georgia, and would be placed in
service in 2016 and 2017, respectively.
Georgia Power is the largest subsidiary of The Southern Company (NYSE:
SO), one of the nation's largest generators of electricity. The company is
an investor-owned, tax-paying utility with rates well below the national
average. Georgia Power serves 2.3 million customers in all but four of
Georgia's 159 counties.
Oglethorpe Power Corporation is a $4.9 billion power supply cooperative
serving 38 consumer-owned EMCs in Georgia. These EMCs provide retail
electric service to approximately 4.1 million Georgians. Oglethorpe Power
is the nation's largest electric cooperative in assets, annual
kilowatt-hour sales, and ultimate consumers served.
The Municipal Electric Authority of Georgia (MEAG Power) is a public
generation and transmission organization providing power to 49 Georgia
communities with annual electric sales of $736 million and 10.8 million
megawatt-hours of delivered energy in 2007.
Dalton Utilities has operated as a public utility since 1889 and
provides potable water, electrical, natural gas and wastewater treatment
services to approximately 65,000 customers in the City of Dalton and
portions of Whitfield, Murray, Gordon, Catoosa and Floyd counties. In 2003,
Dalton Utilities launched OptiLink and now provides broadband, cable TV,
telephone and internet services to residential and business customers.
Southern Nuclear, a subsidiary of Southern Company, operates Plant
Vogtle's two existing nuclear power units for the plant owners. Southern
Nuclear also operates the Edwin I. Hatch Nuclear Plant near Baxley, Ga. and
the Joseph M. Farley Nuclear Plant near Dothan, Ala.
SOURCE Georgia Power
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Related links:
http://www.georgiapower.com
Photo Notes:http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20050216/CLW066LOGO
AP Archive: http://photoarchive.ap.org
PRN Photo Desk, photodesk@prnewswire.com
CONTACT:
Media Relations, Georgia Power,
+1-404-506-7676, or Greg Jones of Oglethorpe Power,
+1-770-270-7890, or Frank Crane of Municipal Electric Authority
of Georgia, +1-770-563-1248, or Lori McDaniel of Dalton
Utilities, +1-706-529-1032
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