The U.S. Department of Energy announced Wednesday that it had agreed to $1.8 billion in loan guarantees that represent the final phase of funding for the Alvin W. Vogtle Electric Generating Plant construction project inWaynesboro, Ga.
The additional two units under construction represent the first from start to finish nuclear plant project begun in the United States in three decades and will result, when completed, in a power plant that can generate electricity for 1.5 million homes.
Among its bragging rights, the plant will also create power that avoids what would otherwise be emissions of 10 million metric tons of carbon emissions annually.
The funding for completion is now in place. The $1.8 billion in loan guarantees went to three Municipal Electric Authority of Georgia subsidiaries, for completion of two Westinghouse AP1000 reactors, which will each have a power generation capacity of 1,100MW.
The funding is the third loan guarantee for the project, which comes from a government commitment made in 2010.
“As we move towards a low-carbon future, the Department’s loan guarantees will play an important part in expanding the role of nuclear energy as a part of our all-of-the-above energy strategy. The Vogtle project has put the U.S. at the forefront of a new generation of advanced nuclear reactors, incorporating numerous innovations resulting in significant operational and safety improvements, and helping to train a world-class workforce with expertise in building nuclear power plants,” said Energy Secretary Ernest Moniz.