Georgia Public Service Commission approves astonishing amount of fossil fuel energy capacity, on pledge data center boom will come

Jul 15

In a blow to billpayers, Georgia Power broke bill relief promises and gets the greenlight to burn expensive fossil fuels for decades to come

ATLANTA—This morning, the Georgia Public Service Commission voted to approve Georgia Power’s long-term energy plan that threatens to roll back promised relief for billpayers and allows the utility to build or buy an extraordinary amount of new capacity to meet the demand of data centers the company pledges are headed to the state. Fossil fuels, including keeping coal plants online indefinitely, will drive much of the new capacity.

Georgia Power’s energy roadmap, called an Integrated Resource Plan (IRP), was approved unanimously by commissioners. It walks back commitments to retire coal-burning units and paves the way for Georgia Power to construct new methane gas-burning units. Georgia Power has already asked for air permits to construct six new methane gas-burning power units.

The plan calls for a historic amount of energy that would cost billions—as much as four times the cost of the new nuclear units at Plant Vogtle. Georgia Power says it must meet the needs of energy-hungry data centers swarming to the state, though critical information on the company’s so-called “pipeline” of interested customers is not public, and Georgia Power has a history of overestimating its energy forecast. Under cross-examination, Georgia Power testified it has not signed on any new large load data centers as customers this year.

In an unprecedented move, Georgia Power violated the terms of a previous settlement made with SELC on behalf of Georgia Interfaith Power and Light (GIPL) and Partnership for Southern Equity by failing to support its promised expansion of demand-side management programs to help residential customers reduce their bills by lowering energy use.

“This is an incredible blow to Georgia Power’s credibility and the credibility of the IRP process,” said Codi Norred, executive director of GIPL. “I can’t see how anyone would come to the negotiation table with Georgia Power in good faith again after witnessing the bait and switch the company just pulled off with the commission’s blessing.”

As part of the commission-approved settlement that decided how much of Plant Vogtle’s extraordinary budget would be passed on to customers, Georgia Power agreed to support a significant expansion of its energy efficiency programs or demand-side management savings, targeting .75% of annual retail sales starting in 2026. In a second settlement agreement for today’s approved IRP, Georgia Power abandoned that support and instead supported a plan that left demand-side management program savings virtually unchanged.

“Frankly, I am shocked that Georgia Power did not honor its commitment, and heartbroken the commission did not step up and defend billpayers in this moment,” said Jennifer Whitfield, a senior attorney in SELC’s Georgia office. “The commission had an opportunity to give this plan a silver lining, but instead left meaningful relief for Georgians on the table.”

“Families and businesses should come first in the IRP process—not necessarily Georgia Power shareholders. This is why advocates fight so hard to expand energy demand curbing programs,” said James Marlow, president of Southface Institute. “By failing to live up to a signed agreement with Georgia Interfaith Power and Light, and then the failure of this public process not being called into question by the Public Service Commissioners hurts Georgia’s citizens and Georgia Power’s credibility.

Georgia Power will update its load forecast before its next round of procurement is finalized because the data center demand has not materialized yet. The company will also continue to share reports on new large energy load facilities interested in service. The plan also calls for up to 1,000 MW of new utility-scale renewable energy resources that Georgia Power can build or purchase. Solar and battery storage will be available to some residential customers, governments, and churches through a virtual pilot power plant program. Virtual power plants are innovative, forward-thinking systems that manage power resources.

The commission approved IRP also includes:

Abandoning commitments to retire fossil fuel burning units at three plants: Plant Scherer (Juliette, GA), Plant Bowen (Euharlee, GA), and Plant Gaston (Wilsonville, AL).
The greenlight to move forward with buying or building capacity, likely in the range of 6,000 to 8,500 MW of energy to fuel Georgia Power’s supposed data center demand.
To increase the company’s “reserve margin,” an energy rainy day reserve. Georgia Power customers already pay to maintain one of the highest reserve margins in the country, generating much more spare energy than similar utilities in the South.
Billions of dollars in transmission investments, much of which is required to accommodate Georgia’s data-center boom, are requested without prices publicly shared for the public’s consideration.
A virtual powerplant program that will make solar and battery storage available to some residential customers, churches, and governments.
The ability to procure up to 1,000 MW of new utility-scale renewable energy resources with potential for additional MWs.
Upgrades to aging nuclear and hydropower units across the state.

Fossil fuels, like coal and methane gas, leave customers vulnerable to costly utility bill spikes. Georgia Power’s residential customers already pay some of the highest electricity bills in the country. In 2023, there was a $2 million spike in methane gas and coal costs that resulted in the average residential customer paying an extra $16 a month. In contrast, solar energy has no fuel cost.

Over the past two years the average residential Georgia Power bill has climbed more than $43 a month. The burden is even heavier for Georgians with lower incomes, who use about 36% more electricity than their counterparts in other states.

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Georgia Interfaith Power and Light (GIPL) is a 501(c)3 nonprofit organization that inspires and equips communities of faith to organize, implement practical climate solutions, and advocate across Georgia on issues of climate change, environmental justice, and community resilience. Born out of the national Interfaith Power and Light movement, GIPL envisions a Georgia where all people can flourish in a healthy environment, a stable climate, and resilient communities.

The Southern Environmental Law Center (SELC) is one of the nation’s most powerful defenders of the environment, rooted in the South. With a long track record, SELC takes on the toughest environmental challenges in court, in government, and in our communities to protect our region’s air, water, climate, wildlife, lands, and people. Nonprofit and nonpartisan, the organization has a staff of 200, including more than 130 legal and policy experts, and is headquartered in Charlottesville, Va., with offices in Asheville, Atlanta, Birmingham, Chapel Hill, Charleston, Nashville, Richmond, and Washington, D.C. Learn more at selc.org.

Southface Institute, the oldest 501(c)3 sustainability nonprofit in the Southeast, was established in 1978 by a group of volunteers who identified a need for community-based solutions focused on energy when energy wasn't yet considered an environmental issue. Since then, Southface has collaborated with nonprofits, businesses, builders, developers, universities, government agencies, and communities to deliver sustainability and resiliency solutions that work for everyone. Learn more about how Southface is building sustainably for life at southface.org, and connect on LinkedIn, X (Twitter), Facebook, and YouTube.