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Nuclear Power Industry is Perfect Illustration of Why Taxpayers Are Saying "No More Bailouts!" - Billions for Plant Vogtle Reactors Impossible to Justify in Terms of Rising Financial Risks, Reduced Demand for Power, Cheaper Renewables and Huge Potential of Energy Efficiency ATLANTA, Dec. 30 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- First it was insurance companies, then it was banks and that was followed by auto companies. Now, the federal government is putting U.S. taxpayers and utility customers at new risk under a controversial U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) loan guarantee program that is slated to award $18.5 billion, with Atlanta-based Southern Company predicted to be first on the list for program funds to build two new nuclear reactors at Plant Vogtle in Waynesboro, Georgia. Ironically, the DOE's "top choice" for the nuclear reactor loan guarantees, which are backed by U.S. taxpayers in the event of defaults, is the very same Plant Vogtle that helped to kill the previous nuclear power boom in the United States in the 1970s and 1980s. Huge cost overruns at the original Plant Vogtle - which escalated from $660 million for four reactors to a whopping $8.87 billion for two - likely played a role in putting the brakes on nuclear expansion plans pursued decades ago in the United States.

Nuclear Power Industry is Perfect Illustration of Why Taxpayers Are Saying "No More Bailouts!" - Billions for Plant Vogtle Reactors Impossible to Justify in Terms of Rising Financial Risks, Reduced Demand for Power, Cheaper Renewables and Huge Potential of Energy Efficiency ATLANTA, Dec. 30 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- First it was insurance companies, then it was banks and that was followed by auto companies. Now, the federal government is putting U.S. taxpayers and utility customers at new risk under a controversial U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) loan guarantee program that is slated to award $18.5 billion, with Atlanta-based Southern Company predicted to be first on the list for program funds to build two new nuclear reactors at Plant Vogtle in Waynesboro, Georgia. Ironically, the DOE's "top choice" for the nuclear reactor loan guarantees, which are backed by U.S. taxpayers in the event of defaults, is the very same Plant Vogtle that helped to kill the previous nuclear power boom in the United States in the 1970s and 1980s. Huge cost overruns at the original Plant Vogtle - which escalated from $660 million for four reactors to a whopping $8.87 billion for two - likely played a role in putting the brakes on nuclear expansion plans pursued decades ago in the United States.

The Nuclear Regulatory Commission has completed its final environmental impact statement for the Vogtle Electric Generating Plant, Units 1 and 2, and concluded that there are no environmental impacts that would preclude license renewal for an additional 20 years of operation. Vogtle Electric Generating Plant units are pressurized water reactors, located about 26 miles southeast of Augusta, Ga. The current operating licenses for Units 1 and 2 expire Jan. 16, 2027 and Feb. 9, 2029 respectively. The operator, Southern Nuclear Operating Co., Inc. submitted an application for renewal of its licenses June 27, 2007. As part of its environmental review of the application, the NRC held public meetings near the plant to discuss the scope of the review and the draft version of the environmental impact statement. Comments were received and considered from members of the public, local officials, and representatives of state and federal agencies. Publication of the final environmental impact statement does not represent final NRC action on the license renewal application. The agency staff is completing its safety evaluation report, and the NRC's Advisory Committee on Reactor Safeguards will evaluate that report and make its recommendation before the agency makes a final decision. The Vogtle final environmental impact statement is available on the NRC's Web site at this address: http://www.nrc.gov/reading-rm/doc-collections/nuregs/staff/sr1437/supplement34/ and can also be viewed in the NRC's ADAMS online documents system at http://www.nrc.gov/reading-rm/adams/web-based.html by entering accession number "ML083380325" in the search window.

The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission staff has scheduled an open house for Thursday, March 26, and will be available to discuss and answer questions about the agency's assessment of safety performance during 2008 at the Vogtle nuclear power plant. The plant, operated by Southern Nuclear Operating Co., is near Waynesboro, Ga., about 26 miles southeast of Augusta. The open house is informal and scheduled to run from 2-4 p.m. in the Burke County Courthouse, 602 Liberty Street in Waynesboro. NRC staff will be available to answer questions on the safety performance of the Vogtle plant, as well as the NRC role in ensuring safe plant operation. Although this open house is specifically designed to answer questions about the plant's performance during the previous year, NRC staff members will also be available to address general issues regarding license renewal for the operating units and the NRC's role in the two additional units planned at the Vogtle site.

The proposed construction of two new nuclear reactors at Plant Vogtle near Waynesboro could likely have cost overruns and possibly face delays, according to testimony released by the Georgia Public Service Commission. Testimony from monitors of proposed new reactors at Vogtle criticizes Georgia Power. (Photo courtesy of the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission) The group monitoring the progress of the new reactors is also being denied access to crucial information about the process, and Georgia Power is not revising economic evaluations based on a variety of factors that include a reduced demand for electricity and cheaper alternatives to nuclear energy, the document says.

The proposed construction of two new nuclear reactors at Plant Vogtle near Waynesboro could likely have cost overruns and possibly face delays, according to testimony released by the Georgia Public Service Commission. Testimony from monitors of proposed new reactors at Vogtle criticizes Georgia Power. (Photo courtesy of the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission) The group monitoring the progress of the new reactors is also being denied access to crucial information about the process, and Georgia Power is not revising economic evaluations based on a variety of factors that include a reduced demand for electricity and cheaper alternatives to nuclear energy, the document says.

Georgia regulators will begin hearings November 3 on whether to allow construction of two Westinghouse AP1000s at the Vogtle nuclear power plant site. Under state law, new power generation cannot be added in Georgia without a certificate of public convenience and necessity issued by the PSC. The Georgia Public Service Commission is expected to vote on the proposal March 17. Georgia Power is the majority owner of the two existing Vogtle reactors, which are operated by Southern Nuclear Operating Co. Both companies are subsidiaries of Southern Co. The PSC will hold a public hearing November 3 on the additional units. Testimony, including from Georgia Power -- which would also be majority owner of the new units, if built -- will continue November 5-7. Hearings and testimony from staff and intervenors will be held from January 12?16 and rebuttal testimony will be received from Georgia Power February 9?13. Southern Nuclear filed an application with NRC in March for a combined construction permit-operating license for the new units.

The Nuclear Regulatory Commission staff has issued its final safety evaluation report (SER) for the proposed renewal of the operating licenses for the Vogtle Electrical Generating Plant, Units 1 and 2. The report concludes that there are no safety concerns that would preclude license renewal because the applicant has effectively demonstrated the capability to manage the effects of plant aging during extended operations and it would not pose an undue risk to the health and safety of workers or the public. Vogtle Units 1 and 2 are pressurized-water reactors located about 26 miles southeast of Augusta, Ga. Vogtle's operator, Southern Nuclear Operating Co., submitted the license renewal application June 29, 2007. The current operating licenses expire Jan. 16, 2027, for Unit 1 and Feb. 9, 2029, for Unit 2. Under NRC regulations, the original operating license for a nuclear power plant has a term of 40 years. The license may be renewed for up to an additional 20 years if NRC requirements are met. Therefore, the operating license would be extended until Jan. 16, 2047, for Unit 1 and Feb. 9, 2049 for Unit 2.

Neither the Army Corps of Engineers nor Southern Nuclear wants to pay for dredging portions of the Savannah River to allow barges to move new reactor parts to Plant Vogtle. "They had talked before about wanting the corps to maintain the channel with federal money, and we informed them we didn't have any," said Bill Bailey, the chief of the corps' Savannah Planning Unit. As part of the plan to add two new reactors to Plant Vogtle, located 110 river miles from the coast, the plant's parent company is exploring the use of barges to haul large components upstream.

The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission on Wednesday renewed the operating licenses for Southern Co's Vogtle nuclear power plant in Georgia for an additional 20 years. The new licenses for Units 1 and 2 will expire on Jan. 16, 2047, and Feb. 9, 2049. Southern submitted the application for the new licenses in June 2007. The Vogtle units represent the 53rd and 54th reactor licenses renewed by the NRC. Twelve other applications are under review.

"If you want to understand why the U.S. hasn't built a nuclear reactor in three decades, the Vogtle power plant outside Atlanta is an excellent reminder of the insanity of nuclear economics. The plant's original cost estimate was less than $1 billion for four reactors. Its eventual price tag in 1989 was nearly $9 billion, for only two reactors. But now there's widespread chatter about a nuclear renaissance, so the Southern Co. is finally trying to build the other two reactors at Vogtle. The estimated cost: $14 billion. And you can be sure that number is way too low, because nuclear cost estimates are always way too low. That's why no Wall Street moneyman in his right mind would finance a new reactor. But President Obama has located an alternative financier: you. On Tuesday he announced an $8.33 billion loan guarantee for the new Vogtle reactors, the first step in the Administration's push to jump-start the nuclear construction industry. Obama also urged Congress to set aside political differences and triple the budget for nuclear loan guarantees. "

"A Fulton County Superior Court judge ruled in favor of an environmental group Friday, but it won't affect Georgia Power's plan to build two nuclear reactors at Plant Vogtle, the company said. The environmental group, the Southern Alliance for Clean Energy, filed the lawsuit challenging the Georgia Public Service Commission's decision to let the utility raise rates to pay for the plants before they start operating. On Friday, Judge Wendy Shoob said the PSC acted illegally by failing to properly document a justification for the reactors. "This is not related to the need for the project," Georgia Power spokesman Jeff Wilson told the AJC. "Construction will continue as scheduled on the new Vogtle units." An attorney for SACE said Friday's ruling was a major victory for their efforts to stop the construction of the nuclear plants, which would be the first built in the U.S. in 30 years. The PSC contends the reactors are safe, but SACE attorney Michael Carvalho said the utilities regulatory commission doesn't have the facts to back it up."

Thirty years after the nation's worst nuclear power plant accident, the partial meltdown at Pennsylvania's Three Mile Island, nuclear is back in the news. Polls show increased public support, and advocates tout its relatively clean, homegrown power potential. Georgia is at the forefront of the industry's hopes, with Southern Co.'s Plant Vogtle near Augusta scheduled to put the first of two planned new reactors into service in 2016.

Thirty years after the nation's worst nuclear power plant accident, the partial meltdown at Pennsylvania's Three Mile Island, nuclear is back in the news. Polls show increased public support, and advocates tout its relatively clean, homegrown power potential. Georgia is at the forefront of the industry's hopes, with Southern Co.'s Plant Vogtle near Augusta scheduled to put the first of two planned new reactors into service in 2016.

Loan guarantee to be announced next week President Obama next week will announce a loan guarantee to build the first nuclear power plant in the U.S. in almost three decades at Burke County's Plant Vogtle, an administration official said Friday. The two new Southern Co. reactors are part of the White House's energy plan that administration officials hope will draw Republican support. Obama's direct involvement in announcing the award underscores the political weight the White House is putting behind its effort to use nuclear power and alternative energy sources to lessen American dependence on foreign oil and reduce the use of other fossil fuels blamed for global warming.

The Nuclear Regulatory Commission has accepted for review a combined license (COL) application for two new reactors at the Vogtle site near Waynesboro, Ga. Southern Nuclear submitted the application and associated information March 31. The application, minus proprietary or security-related details, is available on the NRC Web site here: http://www.nrc.gov/reactors/new-licensing/col/vogtle.html.

The question of a controversial law's constitutionality could halt new nuclear reactors in Georgia, such as the proposed Plant Vogtle. A group opposed to reactors on environmental grounds is using a legal challenge to the financing mechanism granted to Georgia Power during the last legislative session as a way to prevent what it considers to be an ecological mistake. Senate Bill 31 violates the state and federal constitutions on several points, argue lawyers for the Southern Alliance for Clean Energy. The group, which is based in Tennessee but has members and offices in Georgia, has often spoken out against nuclear power and in favor of solar and wind power. Sara Barczak, of the group's Savannah office, relied on environmental arguments in December when she testified against the plant before the Public Service Commission. "Downstream communities should be concerned about project water consumption at the proposed Vogtle site because consumptive water loss, especially during low river flows, can pose significant negative impacts to water quality and aquatic resources," she said.

Notice of Issuance of Early Site Permit and Limited Work Authorization for the Vogtle Electric Generating Plant ESP Site AGENCY: Nuclear Regulatory Commission. ACTION: Notice of Issuance of Early Site Permit and Limited Work Authorization. SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: [[Page 44880]] I. Introduction Pursuant to 10 CFR 2.106, the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) is providing notice of the issuance of Early Site Permit (ESP) ESP-004 to Southern Nuclear Operating Company (SNC), Georgia Power Company, Oglethorpe Power Corporation, Municipal Electric Authority of Georgia, and the City of Dalton, Georgia, an incorporated municipality in the State of Georgia acting by and through its Board of Water, Light and Sinking Fund Commissioners, for approval of a site located in Burke County, Georgia, 26 miles southeast of Augusta, Georgia for two nuclear power reactors; this action is separate from the filing of an application for a construction permit or combined license for such a facility. The NRC has found that the application for an early site permit (ESP), and accompanying limited work authorization (LWA), filed by Southern Nuclear Operating Company (SNC), on behalf of itself and the other four entities named above, complies with the applicable requirements of the Atomic Energy Act of 1954, as amended, and the applicable rules and regulations of the Commission. All required notifications to other agencies or bodies have been duly made. There is reasonable assurance that the permit holders will comply with the regulations in 10 CFR Chapter I and the health and safety of the public will not be endangered. There is reasonable assurance that the site is in conformity with the provisions of the Act and the Commission's regulations. SNC is technically qualified to engage in the activities authorized. Issuance of the ESP will not be inimical to the common defense and security or to the health and safety of the public. Issuance of the LWA will provide reasonable assurance of a

Notice of Issuance of Early Site Permit and Limited Work Authorization for the Vogtle Electric Generating Plant ESP Site AGENCY: Nuclear Regulatory Commission. ACTION: Notice of Issuance of Early Site Permit and Limited Work Authorization. SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: [[Page 44880]] I. Introduction Pursuant to 10 CFR 2.106, the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) is providing notice of the issuance of Early Site Permit (ESP) ESP-004 to Southern Nuclear Operating Company (SNC), Georgia Power Company, Oglethorpe Power Corporation, Municipal Electric Authority of Georgia, and the City of Dalton, Georgia, an incorporated municipality in the State of Georgia acting by and through its Board of Water, Light and Sinking Fund Commissioners, for approval of a site located in Burke County, Georgia, 26 miles southeast of Augusta, Georgia for two nuclear power reactors; this action is separate from the filing of an application for a construction permit or combined license for such a facility. The NRC has found that the application for an early site permit (ESP), and accompanying limited work authorization (LWA), filed by Southern Nuclear Operating Company (SNC), on behalf of itself and the other four entities named above, complies with the applicable requirements of the Atomic Energy Act of 1954, as amended, and the applicable rules and regulations of the Commission. All required notifications to other agencies or bodies have been duly made. There is reasonable assurance that the permit holders will comply with the regulations in 10 CFR Chapter I and the health and safety of the public will not be endangered. There is reasonable assurance that the site is in conformity with the provisions of the Act and the Commission's regulations. SNC is technically qualified to engage in the activities authorized. Issuance of the ESP will not be inimical to the common defense and security or to the health and safety of the public. Issuance of the LWA will provide reasonable assurance of a

Not much stands out in a drive across the piney flatlands of rural eastern Georgia, just below Augusta, this side of South Carolina. A few cows graze in an open field. A trailer home or two and a small house sit back from nearly empty roads. Then, just before the Savannah River, they appear: the twin cooling towers of the Alvin W. Vogtle Electric Generating Plant, each one 548 feet tall, billowing puffy clouds of water vapor, like steam from a cup of hot coffee. Nearby, though much less visible, are the two nuclear reactors that actually produce the plant's electricity.

Not much stands out in a drive across the piney flatlands of rural eastern Georgia, just below Augusta, this side of South Carolina. A few cows graze in an open field. A trailer home or two and a small house sit back from nearly empty roads. Then, just before the Savannah River, they appear: the twin cooling towers of the Alvin W. Vogtle Electric Generating Plant, each one 548 feet tall, billowing puffy clouds of water vapor, like steam from a cup of hot coffee. Nearby, though much less visible, are the two nuclear reactors that actually produce the plant's electricity.

"The recent acceptance of $8.3 billion in taxpayer-backed loan guarantees by the builders of the Vogtle nuclear reactors seems like good news for Georgia electric customers. The taxpayers of the entire country will now share in the costs and risks that had been on the shoulders of the customers of the utilities building the two reactors. But don't celebrate too soon. There are more loan guarantees in the pipeline - a total of $54.5 billion, none for Georgia reactors. These guarantees mean that you and I will repay the lender if the project cannot. The $54.5 billion would amount to an exposure of more than $500 for every American family. Some in Congress want unlimited nuclear loan guarantees, which translate to unlimited taxpayer exposure. For each of these loan guarantees, Georgia taxpayers will be exposed to the risks of new nuclear construction in such places as Texas, Maryland and South Carolina. Before long, the costs Georgians have passed on to taxpayers elsewhere through the Vogtle loan guarantees may be outweighed by the economic exposure that they will take on to help build reactors elsewhere."

Communities up and down the Savannah River and on both shores could be harmed by the 88 million gallons of water needed each day in running two proposed nuclear reactors near Waynesboro, Ga., an environmentalist group says. Sign up for breaking news alerts from The Chronicle State regulators shouldn't grant a permit for expansion of Plant Vogtle until more study is done, according to the Southern Alliance for Clean Energy, a Georgia-based environmental group. The group issued its warning in written testimony it filed recently with the Georgia Public Service Commission, which is considering whether to permit construction of the reactors.

Southern Nuclear Operating Company, Inc.; Notice of Availability of the Final Supplement 34 to the Generic Environmental Impact Statement for License Renewal of Nuclear Plants, Regarding the License Renewal of Vogtle Electric Generating Plant, Units 1 and 2

Southern Nuclear Operating Company, et al.; Notice of Hearing and Opportunity To Petition for Leave To Intervene and Order Imposing Procedures for Access to Sensitive Unclassified Non-Safeguards Information and Safeguards Information for Contention Preparation on a Combined License for the Vogtle Electric Generating Plant Units 3 and 4