Prevent Building New Reactors in Georgia

SACE Sues Energy Department Over Failure to Comply with
Freedom of Information Act Regarding $8.3 Billion in
Federal Loan Guarantees for Vogtle Reactors

Join Southern Alliance for Clean Energy’s efforts to prevent building new nuclear reactors at Plant Vogtle here in Georgia and instead advocate for safe, clean and affordable energy choices that can reduce global warming pollution now including energy efficiency and conservation, wind, solar and bioenergy. With an already high reliance on nuclear power in Georgia and all electric utilities in the state pushing for new, higher cost nuclear reactors at Plant Vogtle, the time is now to take action.

TAKE ACTION

Southern Alliance for Clean Energy has a long history challenging nuclear plant Vogtle in Burke County, Georgia and that involvement continues today as we challenge the proposed expansion at the state and federal level. Plant Vogtle was one of the last and most costly nuclear plants built in the country. Original estimates for four reactors were $660 million. Eventually, only two reactors were built, costing more than $8 billion, resulting at the time in the largest rate hike in Georgia. Unfortunately, Georgia utilities are venturing down this costly and risky path again.

Vogtle Loan Guarantee
SACE is very concerned about the controversial $8.3 billion nuclear loan guarantee awarded to Southern Company's proposed new reactors at Plant Vogtle that President Obama announced in February 2010. SACE filed a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request to the Department of Energy in March 2010 and a FOIA appeal in May 2010 in order to find out more about these risky loan guarantees and we failed to receive a satisfactory response (for examples of responses, look under "Associated Reports" below or our "Reports and Publications " tab). On August 9, 2010 we filed suit against the Department of Energy, read more here.

Federal Licensing
On the federal side, the Early Site Permit was the first step taken by Georgia utilities to obtain federal approval for new nuclear reactors at Plant Vogtle. Southern Company’s nuclear division, Southern Nuclear Operating Company, filed for the permit with the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) in August 2006 on behalf of Plant Vogtle’s co-owners, Georgia Power (a subsidiary of the Southern Company), Oglethorpe Power, the Municipal Electric Authority of Georgia (MEAG Power) and Dalton Utilities. The permit could be used at any time for up to twenty years in any future applications with the NRC. In 2008, Southern Nuclear also filed a combined construction and operating license application (COL-A) with the NRC.

Citizen groups, Atlanta WAND (Women’s Action for New Directions), Blue Ridge Environmental Defense League, Center for a Sustainable Coast, Savannah Riverkeeper and Southern Alliance for Clean Energy, legally challenged both permits to stop the building of new nuclear reactors at Plant Vogtle in Burke County along the Savannah River and the cases are ongoing. The Emory University School of Law’s Turner Environmental Law Clinic, along with attorney Diane Curran of Washington, D.C., are representing the organizations. View our ESP challenge and COL challenge. The NRC approved the ESP in August 2009. SACE and our partners filed an appeal with the DC Circuit Court in October.

State Permitting / Licensing
SACE is also active at the Georgia Public Service Commission, advocating for clean, affordable energy choices such as energy efficiency and wind, solar, and bioenergy and opposing risky proposals, such as Georgia Power’s current effort to build two more costly reactors at Plant Vogtle.

In June 2009, SACE filed a lawsuit on behalf of its members against the Georgia Public Service Commission (GPSC) and Gov. Sonny Perdue that could prevent ratepayers from having to prepay for the proposed Plant Vogtle nuclear reactors. By asking the Court to review the constitutionality of the Georgia Nuclear Energy Financing Act (SB 31) and the legality of the GPSC’s approval of Georgia Power’s request to certify additional nuclear reactors at Plant Vogtle, SACE is taking legal action to halt nuclear construction that is too costly and too high-risk for Georgia. Listen by clicking here to Clark Howard's commentary on SB31 as it was underway during the 2009 state legislative session. Read the PSC analysis on the problems with SB 31. Check out our blog that discusses the prepayment scheme in depth. A hearing was held December 2, 2009 in Fulton County Superior Court and the Judge recused himself from the case. The case was reassigned to Judge Shoob who did not rule on the merits of our case during an April 16th hearing but concluded that SACE did not have standing as ratepayers have not yet been harmed, since a rate increase has not, yet, occurred. We are disappointed by this ruling but remain committed to working to protect ratepayers from the threat of the Vogtle proposal. The second portion of our case was heard on April 30, 2010 and we won! The Judge ruled that the GPSC acted illegally in their approval of the certification of the proposed new Vogtle reactors.