Plant Vogtle in Georgia remains the centerpiece of the state's electricity supply two years after its newest units entered service, and regulators continue working through the financial terms tied to the project. The plant, located near Waynesboro, is the largest nuclear power facility in the United States, with a capacity of 4,536 megawatts after Units 3 and 4 began operating. The two new reactors increased Georgia Power's generating capacity by just over 7 percent.
Georgia Power and staff at the Georgia Public Service Commission have reached an agreement on how to recover the remaining costs of the Vogtle expansion. Under the arrangement, the utility agreed to hold base power rates steady through the end of 2028, providing a measure of predictability for customers even as other bill components can still change. Regulators previously approved a 3.5 percent rate adjustment that raised the average residential bill by 5.48 dollars per month.
Vogtle Unit 4, which entered commercial operation in April 2024, is the most recently completed nuclear reactor in the country. Its output has strengthened Georgia Power's carbon free generation base at a time when statewide electricity demand is rising quickly.
The plant's performance is being closely watched as Georgia weighs a much larger buildout of generation to serve data center growth, making the reliable baseload power from Vogtle an increasingly important part of the state's energy mix.
Source: American Nuclear Society - https://www.ans.org/news/article-5327/georgia-power-psc-staff-reach-deal-on-vogtle-project-recovery-costs/