Cranberry Township, Pa.-based Westinghouse Electric Company recognized Georgia Power, Southern Nuclear and other Plant Vogtle project partners for reaching another milestone: the fuel loading for the new Unit 4 nuclear power plant. Vogtle’s Unit 3 AP1000 reactor entered commercial operation on July 31.
The Plant Vogtle Unit 4 AP1 reactor near Waynseboro, Ga. completed Hot Functional Testing in May and will be the latest AP1000 reactor to reach commercial operation worldwide, the electric company said. Completion of the final stages to commercial operation are expected to be finished later this year, or in the first quarter of 2024, officials said.
“Plant Vogtle is well on its way to becoming the largest source of clean energy in the United States and we are very proud that our advanced, best-in-class AP1000 technology is making it possible,” said Patrick Fragman, Westinghouse President and Chief Executive Officer.
The Vogtle plant features four Westinghouse pressurized water reactors, including two new AP1000 reactors, which will generate more than 4,500 megawatts of reliable, carbon-free electricity once they are all operating. Units 3 and 4 are capable of generating enough electricity to power an estimate 500,000 homes and businesses, the company said.
The company said the AP1000 units at Plant Vogtle are Generation III+ PWRs with fully passive safety systems and modular construction design. The units have the smallest footprint per MWe on the market. Currently, four AP1000 units are setting operational performance records in China.
Elsewhere around the globe, other countries are using the units with Poland selecting an AP1000 reactor for its nuclear energy program and Ukraine making a firm commitment for nine AP1000 units. The technology is under consideration in Central and Eastern Europe, the United Kingdom, India and elsewhere in the United States.