September-October 2017 NPJ

50 NuclearPlantJournal.com Nuclear Plant Journal, September-October 2017 Vogtle Units 3 & 4 Commercial Operation Unit 3: November 2021 Unit 4: November 2022 The first steam generator has been placed at the Vogtle nuclear expansion. The 1.4 million-pound steam generator was lifted into the Unit 3 nuclear island on Tuesday, August 15, 2017 and marks the first major lift under the recently finalized service agreement with Westinghouse which places Southern Nuclear in charge of oversight activities at the construction site. Previously, Westinghouse served as the primary contractor with oversight and responsibility for all constructionactivities. The new service agreement was approved by the U.S. Department of Energy on July 27, 2017. The steam generators for the new units were fabricated in South Korea and transported to the site via the Port of Savannah and then via rail. Georgia Power has also filed a recom- mendation with the Georgia Public Service Commission (PSC) to continue construc- tion of the Vogtle nuclear expansion near Augusta, Georgia. The project’s co-owners, Oglethorpe Power, MEAG Power and Dal- ton Utilities, all support the recommenda- tion. The recommendation is based on the results of a comprehensive schedule, cost- to-complete and cancellation assessment. The Georgia PSC is expected to review the recommendation and make a decision re- garding the future of the Vogtle 3 & 4 proj- ect as part of the 17th Vogtle Construction Monitoring (VCM) proceeding. “Completing theVogtle 3&4 expansion will enable us to continue delivering clean, safe, affordable and reliable energy to millions of Georgians, both today and in the future,” said Paul Bowers, chairman, president and CEO of Georgia Power. “The two new units at Plant Vogtle will be in service for 60 to 80 years and will add another low-cost, carbon-free energy source to our already diverse fuel mix.” Based on all factors considered, completing both units represents the most economic choice for customers and preserves the benefits of carbon- free, baseload generation. Assessments of the project included robust economic analyses; evaluation of various alternatives including abandoning one or both units or converting the units to gas-fired generation; and assumptions related to potential risks including future payments from Toshiba, availability of production tax credits and extension of loan guarantees from the Department of Energy (DOE). The latter two benefits were prescribed in the Energy Policy Act of 2005. Georgia Power expects Vogtle Unit 3 will reach commercial operation in November 2021 and Unit 4 in November 2022. The total rate impact of the project remains less than the original estimate, after including anticipated customer benefits from federal production tax credits, interest savings from loan guarantees from the DOE and the fuel savings of nuclear energy. Once the project is on line, the company should still be able to offer retail rates below the national average with the additional long-term benefits from this new source of clean and reliable energy. “Since the beginning of the Vogtle expansion, we have worked to minimize the impact of this critical project on customers’ monthly bills and, even as we assessed our options of whether or not to continue the project, our focus has been to ensure long-term value,” added Bowers. “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.” In an opinion column in the August 18, 2017 issue of the Wall Street Journal, Commissioner Tim Echols, Vice- Chair of the Georgia Public Service Commission called for the continued construction of the new nuclear power units now underway at Georgia Power’s Plant Vogtle near Waynesboro, Georgia. Commissioner Echols noted that the future of U.S. leadership in nuclear technology is at stake, as well as keeping our energy sources diversified. Recent milestones include:  August 15 – Placement of the 1.4 million-pound steam generator into the Unit 3 nuclear island. Steam generators, measuring nearly 80 feet long, are heat exchangers used to convert water into steam using the heat produced in a nuclear reactor core. Each new AP1000 unit at Plant Vogtle requires two steam generators, all of which are currently on-site.  August 18 – Placement of the Unit 4 pressurizer compartment. The pressurizer compartment was assembled on-site and is 60 feet tall, 40 feet wide and weighs 240,000 pounds. It will house the AP1000 pressurizer inside containment, which maintains the system pressure during operation and limits pressure transients. During the reduction or increase of plant load, the pressurizer accommodates volume changes in the reactor coolant.  August 19 – Placement of the second of four accumulator tanks for the project. Part of the Westinghouse AP1000 passive core cooling system, accumulator tanks are spherical tanks that hold borated water inside the containment vessel within the nuclear island. In the event of a loss of reactor coolant, the tanks are designed to provide a high rate of coolant flow into the reactor for several minutes. There are two accumulator tanks per unit with each tank weighing approximately 85,000 pounds and standing more than 17 feet tall. Fabricated in and shipped from Italy, all four accumulator tanks needed for the completion of the units are now on-site. The first steam generator is lifted for placement inside the Vogtle Unit 3 containment vessel. Sources: Georgia Power, Georgia Public Service Commission. Contact: Georgia Power Media Relations, telephone: (404) 506-7676.