25 Mar (NucNet): US energy secretary Rick Perry has finalised up to $3.7bn in additional loan guarantees to finance the continued construction of the Vogtle-3 and -4 nuclear power units in Georgia.
The financing for Vogtle, the first new nuclear reactors to be licensed and to begin construction in the US in more than 30 years, was first announced in 2017. The decision brings the federal government’s total in loan guarantees for the project to $12bn, some of which was provided by the Obama administration in 2014 and 2015.
Up to $1.67bn of the $3.7bn will go to Southern Company subsidiary Georgia Power; up to $1.6bn will go to Oglethorpe Power Corporation; and up to $415m will go to three subsidiaries of the Municipal Electric Authority of Georgia (MEAG).
Southern Company owns 45.7% of the Vogtle project via its subsidiary Georgia Power. The other co-owners are Oglethorpe Power with 30%, MEAG Power with 22.7% and Dalton Utilities with the remaining 1.6%.
Another company, Southern Nuclear, which operates nuclear plants for Georgia Power, took over project management from Westinghouse following its bankruptcy in 2017.
“The Vogtle project is critically important to supporting the administration’s direction to revitalise and expand the US nuclear industry,” Mr Perry said. “A strong nuclear industry supports a reliable and resilient grid, and strengthens our energy and national security.”
Once in operation, the two new Westinghouse AP1000 reactors are expected to provide more than 17 million megawatt-hours of electricity annually – enough to power more than 1.6 million homes.
In an update last month Southern Company said construction of Vogtle-3 and -4 was 74% complete at the end of 2018.
Under the latest schedule, Vogtle-3 is expected to begin commercial operation in November 2021 and Vogtle-4 in November 2022.
The two new nuclear reactors at Vogtle will supplement the two existing reactor units at the site. Currently, approximately 7,500 construction workers are on site and more than 9,000 workers are expected to be on site during peak construction. Approximately 800 permanent jobs are expected once the units begin operation.
