Georgia Power Co. told state regulators Thursday that it should finish building two new nuclear reactors at Plant Vogtle, despite delays expected to nearly double their ultimate price tag.
Southern Nuclear, which is building the new Westinghouse AP1000 reactors for Georgia Power, Dalton Utilities, Oglethorpe Power Corp., and the Municipal Electric Authority of Georgia, said in a regulatory filing that completing the unfinished units will cost more than $8 billion in extra funds – about half of which must come from Georgia Power ratepayers – and brings the total cost of the two units to a record high $19 billion.
The utility expects to finish building and activate units 3 and 4 at Plant Vogtle by November 2022 – about two years beyond its previous estimates and five years later than its original estimate.
The new units are expected to boost Georgia Power rates to retail customers by as much as 10.3 percent. But the utility said about 5 percent of that increase is already factored in rates because of the pre-payment of some of the costs for the new reactors.
“Today, the total cost of electricity from Georgia Power is significantly below the national average, and when the project is completed, we expect that the new units will help keep energy bills competitive,” Georgia Power President Paul Bowers said.