ATLANTA, Aug. 8, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- Georgia Power
announced today that Southern Nuclear has made significant progress
on construction of Vogtle 3 & 4 since assuming project
management on behalf of the project co-owners (Georgia Power,
Oglethorpe Power, MEAG Power and Dalton Utilities) from
Westinghouse following its bankruptcy in 2017. The company
also announced that its revised capital and construction cost
forecast for its share of the project has increased from
$7.3 billion to $8.4 billion, based on a revised cost-to-complete
estimate from Southern Nuclear. The new nuclear units are the first
to be built in the United States
in a generation and the only new units currently under construction
in this country. With projected in-service dates still expected in
November 2021 (Unit 3) and
November 2022 (Unit 4), the new units
will generate enough emission-free electricity to power
approximately 500,000 homes and businesses.
More than 7,000 workers from across the country are onsite
working to complete the new units and focused on safety, quality
construction and productivity. Milestones over the past 60 days
alone have included a major concrete placement lasting more than
eight continuous hours inside the Unit 3 shield building and the
placement of a 52,000-pound Q233 piping module for Unit 4, a
critical piece of the overall passive core cooling system, inside
the containment vessel allowing large quantities of specialized
piping to now be installed. Click here to view photos of these
milestones and other recent construction progress.
"Significant progress has been made on the construction of
Vogtle 3 & 4 since the transition to Southern Nuclear following
the Westinghouse bankruptcy," said Paul
Bowers, chairman, president and CEO of Georgia Power. "While
there will always be challenges in building the first new nuclear
units in this country in more than 30 years, we remain focused on
reducing project risk and maintaining the current project momentum
in order to provide our customers with a new carbon-free energy
source that will put downward pressure on rates for 60 to 80
years."
As work continued at the site uninterrupted during the
transition from Westinghouse to Southern Nuclear, project
leadership made a series of decisions, such as providing craft
labor incentives to both attract and retain adequate staffing
levels and increased field supervision and engineering oversight,
in an effort to lower project risk and maintain project momentum.
As a result, and based on a year's worth of experience managing the
project, Southern Nuclear has revised its estimate of the cost to
complete the project. This revised forecast includes
approximately $700 million in
additional projected costs which will be absorbed by the company
and have no impact on customer bills. While it is believed the
increased projected costs are reasonable, necessary and prudent,
the company has decided not to ask the Georgia Public Service
Commission (PSC) to approve those costs so soon after receiving the
Georgia PSC's approval of the capital forecast last year.
Additionally, based on the latest estimate, the previous
contingency for the project has been determined to be insufficient
to fully offset forecasted cost increases resulting in an increased
contingency of approximately $400
million, which may be presented to the Georgia PSC for
evaluation as and when appropriate in the future.
"Our responsibility is to our customers first and we are
accountable to them for this project and committed to ensuring that
our state has affordable and reliable energy today and for
generations to come," added Bowers.
From the beginning of the Vogtle expansion, Georgia Power has
worked with the Georgia PSC to pursue all available benefits for
customers and minimize the impact of the new units on electric
bills. A total of $75 in 2018 bill
credits, or $188 million overall, was
approved by the Georgia PSC as part of its order to continue
construction of Vogtle 3 & 4 in December
2017. Georgia Power customers are receiving three separate
$25 credits in 2018 with the third
and final $25 credit expected to be
issued in September. The credits are a direct result of parent
guarantee payments for the Vogtle project from Toshiba available
due to the strength of the original contract for the project and
protections in place for Georgia
electric customers.
Customers also continue to save money throughout 2018 under the
company's updated 2018 Nuclear Construction Cost Recovery (NCCR)
tariff. The tariff allows the company to collect financing costs
for the Vogtle expansion every month, a structure which saves
customers hundreds of millions of dollars by reducing financing and
borrowing costs, while also phasing the new units into rates over
time helping to avoid "rate shock" once the new units come online.
As a result of the Toshiba parent guarantee payments and changes in
federal tax law this year, customers will pay $139 million less than expected in 2018 for the
Vogtle project with the typical residential customer using 1,000
kilowatt-hours per month paying $1
less each month than they did in 2017.
Nuclear energy is an essential piece of Georgia Power's
commitment to deliver safe, clean, reliable and affordable energy
for customers. Emission-free nuclear energy generated by the
existing units at Plants Vogtle and Hatch currently accounts for
more than 20 percent of Georgia's
overall electricity production every year. Once the new units come
online, Plant Vogtle will be the first four-unit nuclear facility
in the Unites States. To learn more, visit
www.georgiapower.com/nuclear.
About Georgia Power
Georgia Power is the largest
electric subsidiary of Southern Company (NYSE: SO), America's
premier energy company. Value, Reliability, Customer Service and
Stewardship are the cornerstones of the company's promise to 2.5
million customers in all but four of Georgia's 159 counties. Committed to
delivering clean, safe, reliable and affordable energy at rates
below the national average, Georgia Power maintains a diverse,
innovative generation mix that includes nuclear, coal and natural
gas, as well as renewables such as solar, hydroelectric and wind.
Georgia Power focuses on delivering world-class service to its
customers every day and the company is consistently recognized by
J.D. Power and Associates as an industry leader in customer
satisfaction. For more information, visit
www.GeorgiaPower.com and connect with the company on Facebook
(Facebook.com/GeorgiaPower), Twitter (Twitter.com/GeorgiaPower) and
Instagram (Instagram.com/ga_power).
Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-Looking Statements
Certain information contained in this communication is
forward-looking information based on current expectations and plans
that involve risks and uncertainties. Forward-looking information
includes, among other things, statements concerning the expected
cost and schedule for completion of construction of Plant Vogtle
Units 3 and 4. Georgia Power cautions that there are certain
factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from
the forward-looking information that has been provided. The reader
is cautioned not to put undue reliance on this forward-looking
information, which is not a guarantee of future performance and is
subject to a number of uncertainties and other factors, many of
which are outside the control of Georgia Power; accordingly, there
can be no assurance that such suggested results will be realized.
The following factors, in addition to those discussed in
Georgia Power's Annual Report on
Form 10-K for the year ended December 31,
2017, and subsequent securities filings, could cause actual
results to differ materially from management expectations as
suggested by such forward-looking information: the impact of any
failure to amend the DOE loan guarantee to allow for additional
borrowings; state and federal rate regulations and the impact of
pending and future rate cases and negotiations; the impact of
recent and future federal and state regulatory changes, as well as
changes in application of existing laws and regulations; the
uncertainty surrounding the recently enacted federal tax reform
legislation, including implementing regulations and Internal
Revenue Service interpretations, actions that may be taken in
response by regulatory authorities, and its impact, if any, on the
credit ratings of Georgia Power; current and future litigation or
regulatory investigations, proceedings, or inquiries; available
sources and costs of fuels; effects of inflation; the ability to
control costs and avoid cost and schedule overruns during the
development construction and operation of facilities, including
Plant Vogtle Units 3 and 4 which include components based on new
technology that is just beginning initial operation in the global
nuclear industry at scale, including changes in labor costs,
availability and productivity, challenges with management of
contractors, subcontractors or vendors, adverse weather conditions,
shortages, increased costs or inconsistent quality of equipment,
materials, and labor, including any changes related to imposition
of import tariffs, contractor or supplier delay, non-performance
under construction, operating, or other agreements, operational
readiness, including specialized operator training and required
site safety programs, unforeseen engineering or design problems,
start-up activities (including major equipment failure and system
integration), and/or operational performance; the ability to
construct facilities in accordance with the requirements of permits
and licenses (including satisfaction of U.S. Nuclear Regulatory
Commission (NRC) requirements, to satisfy any environmental
performance standards and the requirements of tax credits and other
incentives, and to integrate facilities into the Southern Company
system upon completion of construction; advances in technology;
legal proceedings and regulatory approvals and actions related to
Plant Vogtle Units 3 and 4, including Georgia Public Service
Commission approvals and NRC actions; a decision by more than 10%
of the owners of Plant Vogtle Units 3 and 4 not to proceed with
construction; the inherent risks involved in operating and
constructing nuclear generating facilities, including
environmental, health, regulatory, natural disaster, terrorism, and
financial risks; interest rate fluctuations and financial market
conditions and the results of financing efforts; changes in The
Southern Company's or Georgia Power's credit ratings, including
impacts on interest rates, access to capital markets, and
collateral requirements; the impacts of any sovereign financial
issues, including impacts on interest rates, access to capital
markets, impacts on foreign currency exchange rates, counterparty
performance, and the economy in general, as well as potential
impacts on the benefits of U.S. Department of Energy loan
guarantees; and the effect of accounting pronouncements issued
periodically by standard setting bodies. Georgia Power expressly
disclaims any obligation to update any forward-looking
information.
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SOURCE Georgia Power