Google Partners with Georgia Power on Nuclear Uprate

Georgia Power and Google have announced a partnership to upgrade two nuclear power plants in Georgia. The uprate, which is expected to increase generating capacity through targeted upgrades and improvements to turbines, pumps, motors, and cooling systems, will be submitted by Georgia Power to the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.

The two units at Hatch-1 and -2 are expected to be upgraded in the second quarter of 2027, while Vogtle-1 and -2 will follow suit in the last quarter of 2028. The upgrades are expected to increase generating capacity at each plant by a significant amount, with Hatch-1 and -2 reaching 3,586 MWe and Vogtle-1 and -2 reaching 4,676 MWe.

According to Georgia Power, this uprate will not impact the two newest AP1000s, Vogtle-3 and -4, which connected to the grid in 2023 and 2024. Google's involvement in the partnership is part of a subscription-based program, where they will subscribe to the new NU-1 tariff and receive zero-emission credits associated with the power ultimately generated by the upgraded units.

According to Georgia Power, this approach protects nonparticipating customers from incremental costs related to uprate work. The utility estimates that Google's involvement will generate approximately $900 million in benefits to Georgia Power customers over the life of the units.