Vogtle Electric Generating Plant

The Alvin W. Vogtle Electric Generating Plant, also known as Plant Vogtle (/ˈvoʊɡəl/ VOH-gəl), is a four-unit nuclear power plant located in Burke County, near Waynesboro, Georgia, in the southeastern United States. With a power capacity of 4,536 megawatts, it is the largest nuclear power plant in the United States (as of 2025), after Units 3 & 4 began operating. It is also the only nuclear plant in the country with four reactors. It is named after a former Alabama Power and Southern Company board chairman, Alvin Vogtle.

The first two units are Westinghouse pressurized water reactors (PWR), with a General Electric steam turbine and electric generator. Units 1 and 2 were completed in 1987 and 1989, respectively, and have a gross electricity generation capacity of 1,215 MW, for a combined capacity of 2,430 MW. The twin natural-draft cooling towers are 548 ft (167 m) tall and provide cooling to the plant's main condensers. Four smaller mechanical draft cooling towers provide nuclear service cooling water (NSCW) to safety and auxiliary non-safety components, as well as remove the decay heat from the reactor when the plant is offline. One natural-draft tower and two NSCW towers serve each unit. In 2009, the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) renewed the licenses for both units for an additional 20 years to January 16, 2047 for Unit 1, and September 2, 2049 for Unit 2. During the construction of Vogtle's first two units, capital investment required jumped from an estimated $660 million to $8.87 billion. ($19.5 billion in 2024 dollars)

Two additional units utilizing Westinghouse AP1000 reactors began preliminary construction in 2009, with Unit 3 being completed in July 2023. Natural-draft type cooling towers were also selected, and the two new cooling towers are nearly 600 ft (180 m) tall. During construction, the units suffered several delays and cost overruns. The certified construction and capital costs for these two new units were originally $14 billion, according to the Seventeenth Semi-annual Vogtle Construction Monitoring Report in 2017. This last report blames the latest increase in costs on the contractor not completing work as scheduled. Another complicating factor in the construction process is the bankruptcy of Westinghouse in 2017. In 2018, costs were estimated to be about $25 billion. By 2021, they were estimated to be over $28.5 billion. In 2023, costs had increased to $34 billion, with work still to be completed on Vogtle 4.

Unit 3 began commercial operations on July 31, 2023, becoming the first new nuclear reactor in the United States in 7 years. Unit 4 entered commercial operation on April 29, 2024.

As of the reported FY 2024 3rd quarter financial statements, for units 3-4, the net capital costs incurred by Georgia Power was $10.65 billion in total, with an additional estimated $83 million in completion costs related to site demobilization. This is inclusive of $1.2 billion not shared with other Vogtle owners, net of ~$1.9 billion received from Toshiba in settlement and related customer refunds. With Georgia Power's 45.7% ownership interest implying a total capitalized construction cost of $23.76 billion for Unit 3-4. This is not inclusive of the non-capitalized financing charges incurred (interest) totaling $3.53 billion by Georgia Power, as this was recovered via ratepayer surcharges before completion.

Vogtle units 1 and 2 are a set of identical Westinghouse 4-Loop reactors. Like many North American nuclear power stations, each of the Vogtle units are constructed of a steel-lined, prestressed, post-tensioned concrete cylinder with a hemispherical dome. The containment was designed by the Los Angeles Regional Office of the Bechtel Corporation.

In 2008, reactors 1 and 2 were increased in power by 1.7% by an "Appendix K" uprate, also called a Measurement Uncertainty Recapture (MUR) uprate. Measurement uncertainty recapture power uprates are less than 2 percent, and are achieved by implementing enhanced techniques for calculating reactor power. This involves the use of state-of-the-art feedwater flow measurement devices to more precisely measure feedwater flow, which is used to calculate reactor power.

More precise measurements reduce the degree of uncertainty in the power level, which is used by analysts to predict the ability of the reactor to be safely shut down under postulated accident conditions. Because the reactor power can be calculated with much greater accuracy than with the older venturi type measurement, the plant can safely run within a tighter margin of error to its limits. The newer ultrasonic flowmeter works by comparing the time it takes ultrasonic sound pulses to travel upstream versus downstream inside the pipe, and uses the time differential to figure the flow rate of the water in the pipe.