Vogtle plantnuclear energy plant in Waynesboro, Georgia, is the biggest supply of fresh vitality within the U.S. after the addition of two new reactors, based on Georgia Energy.
The reactor of unit 4 of the plant began commercial operations in April and Unit 3 got here on-line final 12 months. They’re the primary reactors constructed from scratch and related to the grid in additional than three a long time, and collectively they’ll energy multiple million properties and companies, based on the utility supplier.
However the revival of a nuclear energy plant is difficult and expensive.
The 2 new reactors had been initially budgeted at $14 billion, however that value has greater than doubled. The challenge was additionally delayed by seven years.
“We have had some challenges, it has been a tricky journey, issues we did not anticipate,” mentioned Chris Womack, CEO of South Co., the father or mother of the utility. “From the Fukushima tsunami to the contractor going bankrupt to Covid, there have been various issues that occurred.”
The plant helps meet the rising demand for electrical energy. For 4.18 trillion kilowatt hours electrical energy was generated within the US final 12 months, up about 2.2% from 2022. Demand from knowledge facilities and synthetic intelligence can also be fueling renewed interest in nuclear power.
The U.S. has 54 working nuclear energy crops and 94 reactors, making it the world’s largest producer of nuclear energy — accounting for 30 p.c of the world’s nuclear energy, based on the World Nuclear Affiliation. However the US reactors are 42 years old medium and changing them is a fancy activity.
So why is it so arduous to construct nuclear reactors within the US, and may the brand new Vogtle reactors be a blueprint or a cautionary story for the long run?
