BIRMINGHAM, Ala., Aug. 15 /PRNewswire/ -- Southern Nuclear Operating
Company today filed an application with the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory
Commission (NRC) for an Early Site Permit (ESP) on behalf of the owners of
the Alvin W. Vogtle Electric Generating Plant in Waynesboro, Ga. Plant
Vogtle is owned by Georgia Power Company, Oglethorpe Power Corporation, the
Municipal Electric Authority of Georgia and the City of Dalton.
(Logo: http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20050216/CLW066LOGO)
The ESP is another step in the NRC's new, streamlined licensing process
designed to reduce regulatory uncertainty by completing the process in
stages. The permit does not commit the owners to build new units, but is
part of the licensing process should they decide that nuclear power is the
best option for providing additional generation.
The ESP will allow the NRC to review and pre-approve the plant site for
future construction of new nuclear units and allow Southern Nuclear to
conduct design, construction and other site-specific evaluations before the
owners make the decision to build. Georgia Power also would need approval
from the Georgia Public Service Commission before making a final decision
to build the new units.
"We expect demand for electricity in the Southeast - specifically in
Georgia - to increase significantly by 2015 and beyond," said Southern
Nuclear President and CEO Barnie Beasley. "Nuclear power is a safe,
reliable, cost- effective power source that has a low impact on the
environment. It is a prudent business decision to preserve it as an option
to meet that need."
Southern Nuclear also will prepare and file in the 2008 timeframe a
Combined Construction and Operating License (COL) for potential new units
at Plant Vogtle - the next step in the federal regulatory process. The COL
provides the company with one license to construct and operate a new plant
based on an NRC pre-approved design at a specific site should the owners
decide to build.
Southern Nuclear, a subsidiary of Southern Company, operates Plant
Vogtle's two existing nuclear power units for the plant owners. Southern
Nuclear also operates Edwin I. Hatch Nuclear Plant in Baxley, Ga., and
Joseph M. Farley Nuclear Plant in Dothan, Al.
Georgia Power is the largest subsidiary of Southern Company, one of the
nation's largest generators of electricity. The company 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 well below the
national average and its 2.25 million customers are in all but four of
Georgia's 159 counties.
Oglethorpe Power Corporation is a $4.8 billion power supply cooperative
serving 38 Electric Membership Corporations (EMCs) in Georgia. These EMCs
provide retail electric service to more than 3.7 million Georgians
throughout the state. Oglethorpe Power is the nation's largest electric
cooperative in terms of assets, annual kilowatt-hour sales and ultimate
consumers served.
MEAG Power is a public corporation providing power to 49 Georgia
communities that in turn bring energy to approximately 600,000 citizens. As
the third largest power supplier in the state, energy sales exceeded $703
million in 2005. MEAG Power has assets of over $4.8 billion, co-owns four
generating plants with a generating capacity of 1,566 megawatts, and
co-owns Georgia's Integrated Transmission System (ITS).
Dalton Utilities serves 25,000 people and is one of the oldest power
suppliers in Georgia. A department of the city of Dalton, it also provides
water, gas and sewage services.
With 4.3 million customers and more than 40,000 megawatts of generating
capacity, Atlanta-based Southern Company (NYSE: SO) is the premier energy
company serving the Southeast, one of America's fastest-growing regions. A
leading U.S. producer of electricity, Southern Company owns electric
utilities in four states and a growing competitive generation company, as
well as fiber optics and wireless communications. Visit our 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:
Carrie Phillips of Southern Company,
+1-205-992-5168, or chphilli@southernco.com
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