ATLANTA --- Georgia Power customers will be paying 9 percent more for electricity to cover part of the cost of constructing two nuclear reactors at Plant Vogtle near Waynesboro.
On Tuesday the Public Service Commission approved the increase, which will raise the average monthly residential bill $1.30 in 2011 and by the same amount each of the next six years as the 9 percent increase is phased in.
The company argued that paying some of the finance expense up front will prevent a 12 percent rate increase after the plant is completed.
Consumer groups and the commission staff had recommended against early construction billing, saying there would be little incentive for the company to hold costs to the estimated $6.45 billion if cost overruns can be passed along rather than shouldered by shareholders.
Georgia Power owns 46 percent of the plant. Oglethorpe Power, the Municipal Electric Authority of Georgia and the city of Dalton own a combined majority. Industry insiders speculate that many of the other owners will pass along costs during construction, and advocates for Georgia Power say Tuesday's action puts them on equal footing.
The commission split 4-1. Commissioner Bobby Baker urged his colleagues to wait until next year, when the company would have to submit detailed financial information as it seeks to renew the base rates. As part of Tuesday's decision, Georgia Power must submit quarterly reports on construction costs at Plant Vogtle and must pay $600,000 yearly for the commission to hire experts to review the reports.
Former Commissioner Angela Speir Phelps participated in many of the PSC hearings leading up to Tuesday's vote before she retired to become deputy director of the advocacy group Georgia Watch.
She said consumers won't save any money by paying before electricity generation begins. She points to testimony from the company that the only real savings would come if investors in the company's bonds set low interest rates because they are assured by the steady stream of income from customers during construction.
OBJECTIONS STILL BEING PRESENTED
Testimony continued Tuesday in a weeklong series of presentations in which the Atomic Safety life; the impact of dredging the river to accommodate barges needed to deliver reactor components; and the failure of the Nuclear Regulatory Commission to ask Southern Nuclear to explore dry cooling as an alternative to water-cooled systems.
Although environmental groups have argued these concerns warrant more studies before a permit can be issued for the project, Southern Nuclear and NRC staff members have said the existing evaluations are complete and adequate.
An NRC spokesman said Tuesday that the hearings were expected to continue today and could last into Thursday morning. They are being held at the Doubletree Hotel & Convention Center in Augusta.
-- From staff reports
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