Is Vogtle Nuclear Expansion on Schedule? CEO Sounds Confident

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We still expect to meet the November regulatory-approved in-service dates for both Units 3 and 4," Southern Company CEO Tom Fanning said during the company's first quarter earnings call on April 30. The in-service dates he was referring to are November 2021 and November 2022 for Units 3 and 4, respectively, at the Vogtle nuclear expansion project near Waynesboro, Georgia. The project is owned by four partners: Southern Company subsidiary Georgia Power (45.7%), Oglethorpe Power Corp. (OPC, 30%), Municipal Electric Authority of Georgia (MEAG Power, 22.7%), and Dalton Utilities (1.6%).

Furthermore, Fanning said sitemanagers continue to believe they can hit target dates set in the company's AggressiveSite Workplan," which are May 2021 and May 2022, respectively. Is it riskierthan it was before? Yeah. But it's still a reasonable objective; otherwise, wewouldn't stick with it," said Fanning.

Significant Progress Made on Both New Vogtle Units

About two weeks ago, Southern Company announced it would reduce the workforce on the project by 20% in an effort to mitigate the impacts of COVID-19. Yet, in spite of the pandemic, the Vogtle project reported good progress in April. The site said the construction completion rate was about 1.25%, which exceeds the approximately 1% per month needed to meet the November in-service dates, although it is under the 2% per month required to achieve the aggressive site work plan. Fanning said direct construction was approximately 90% complete at the end of April.

One notable achievement that Fanninghappily reported on was the completion of open vessel testing on Unit 3, whichhe said had been finished only a few hours prior to the call. Open vessel testingverified that water flowed properly from key safety systems into the reactorvessel, thereby ensuring paths were not blocked or constricted. The milestone confirmedthat pumps, motors, valves, pipes, and other components of the systems functionedas designed. It also prepared the unit for cold hydro testing and hotfunctional testing, which are both critical tests required prior to initialfuel loading. Cold hydro testing is currently scheduled to begin in June orJuly, while hot functional testing will follow, reportedly in the August toSeptember timeframe (Figure 1).

1. The in-service date for Unit 3 is projected to be in May 2021, according to the project's Aggressive Site Workplan, while the regulatory-approved in-service date is November 2021. Source: Southern Company First Quarter 2020 Earnings Conference Call Presentation

In February, before COVID-19 hadseriously impacted the U.S., Southern Company accelerated the targetedcompletion date for Unit 4 by two months to March 2022. Yesterday, however, Fanningannounced the date had been pushed back to May, which was the target prior tothe most recent change. Still, several interim milestones were reached on Unit4 during the quarter, including the installation of the 300-ton polar crane andsetting of the containment vessel top head.

Responding to the Pandemic

In March, when COVID-19 became more of a concern, the company opened an onsite medical clinic accessible to all Vogtle Units 3 and 4 personnel. North America's Building Trades Unions (NABTU) praised Southern Company for its coronavirus response. The clinic is open 24/7 and staffed with medical professionals who can administer tests for illnesses such as flu, strep, and COVID-19. The free onsite services provide workers convenient medical care solutions and quick test results, according to the NABTU. In addition to the clinic, precautions to maintain health of those onsite include:

• Implementing self-isolation for teammembers who have been in close contact with individuals undergoing testing.
• Promoting prevention guidelines ofthe Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, such as social distancing.
• Staggering break times.
• Canceling large in-person meetings.
• Suspending buses and trams onsite.
• Implementing aggressive cleaningpractices.

The health and safety of ourmembers and their families is always job number one," NABTU President SeanMcGarvey said in a statement. We commend the extraordinary measures taken bySouthern Company at Plant Vogtle to go above and beyond the call of duty tokeep our members safe and healthy. Together, with great partners like SouthernCompany, the building trades are doing whatever it takes to help our countryduring this time and that includes ensuring we continue to safely operate,maintain and build new infrastructure to keep our nation powered and safe."

Costs Remain Unchanged

Fanning said there was no changein the total capital cost forecast for the project from previous disclosures. Henoted that $66 million had been allocated from Georgia Power's projectcontingency fund during the first quarter, reflecting cost risks associatedwith construction productivity, field support, subcontract, and procurement, aswell as the impacts of the April 2020 reduction in workforce." Fanning said thecompany fully expects to utilize contingency funds in their entirety as theproject progresses toward completion.

The next few months will bepivotal as we adjust to a smaller, more streamlined workforce and seek toimprove productivity," Fanning said.

However, Southern Company does stillhave some margin built into the schedule. Specifically, the company has maintaineda six-month window to go from fuel load to in-service. Fanning said thatprocess only took four and a half months on AP1000 units constructed in China,and he believes the Vogtle project will meet or beat the Chinese timeline.

So, look, November is whatmatters. We gotta beat November and our eyes are on that. The site continues tobelieve they can hit a May schedule," said Fanning. Has it gotten moreaggressive? Yeah-still is a reasonable shot at it."

-Aaron Larson is POWER's executiveeditor (@AaronL_Power, @POWERmagazine).

The post Is Vogtle Nuclear Expansion on Schedule? CEO Sounds Confident appeared first on POWER Magazine.