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Southern Co.’s (NYSE:SO) Georgia Power is delaying the commercial operation of the newly constructed Unit 3 reactor at its Vogtle nuclear power plant for at least another month, it said Friday in an 8-K filing.
Southern (SO) said a degraded hydrogen seal in the main generator was found during the start-up and pre-operational testing of Plant Vogtle Unit 3, and it now estimates the in-service date for the reactor will occur in July, instead of June as had been expected.
The utility said Unit 3, whose power-ascension testing is ~95% complete, operated as designed during the pre-operational testing and start-up sequence.
The Vogtle plant expansion has been plagued by delays and cost increases, and is now more than $16B over budget.
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