Georgia Power
| Company type | Publicly traded, investor-owned utility |
|---|---|
| Industry | Electric utility |
| Predecessor | Atlanta Consolidated Street Railway Company |
| Founded | 1902 |
| Headquarters | Atlanta, Georgia , United States |
Area served | Most of Georgia (all but four of 159 counties) |
Key people | Paul Bowers (CEO) |
| Products | Electricity generation and distribution |
Number of employees | 9,000 |
| Parent | Southern Company |
Georgia Power is an electric utility company based in Atlanta, Georgia, United States. Originally founded as the Georgia Railway and Power Company, it commenced operations in 1902 by running streetcars in Atlanta after taking over from the Atlanta Consolidated Street Railway Company.
As the largest of the four electric utilities under the ownership and management of Southern Company, Georgia Power is a publicly traded, investor-owned utility that serves over 2.4 million customers across all but four of Georgia’s 159 counties. The company employs roughly 9,000 individuals throughout the state. Its main corporate headquarters, known as the Georgia Power Building, is situated at 241 Ralph McGill Boulevard in downtown Atlanta.
In 2006, Georgia Power absorbed the Savannah Electric & Power Company, another subsidiary within the Southern Company portfolio.
History
The company began as the Georgia Railway and Power Company in 1902, operating streetcar services in Atlanta after succeeding the Atlanta Consolidated Street Railway Company. During the 1930s, it issued Two Bells, a newsletter initially circulated on its streetcars and later distributed on buses operated by its successor entity. Between 1937 and 1950, Georgia Power managed trolleybus operations in Atlanta, reaching a peak of 31 routes by 1950—the largest trolleybus network in the United States at that time. Following the 1950 transit strike in Atlanta, control of transit operations passed to the Atlanta Transit Company. The contemporary Atlanta Streetcar was introduced in the early 2000s to restore streetcar service along Peachtree Street.
Georgia Power developed multiple hydroelectric dams, including Morgan Falls Dam near Atlanta and others located in the mountainous northeast region of Georgia. These dams resulted in reservoirs such as Lake Burton, Lake Seed, Lake Rabun, Lake Tallulah Falls, Lake Tugalo, and Lake Yonah—the latter two situated on the Tugaloo River at the border with South Carolina.
In August 2018, after announcing budget overruns for two additional nuclear reactors at its Vogtle Electric Generating Plant, credit rating agency Moody's downgraded Georgia Power’s credit rating from A3 to Baa1.
To support completion of the Vogtle expansion project, Georgia Power agreed in September 2018 to assume a larger portion of costs if total expenses exceeded $9.2 billion.
In 2019, CEO Paul Bowers sought approval from regulators to increase average residential electricity bills by approximately $200 annually to offset project expenditures. By June 2021, Georgia Power requested an additional $235 million per year rate hike—around a 10% increase—once Vogtle unit 3 becomes operational to cover both capital and operating costs.
Oil Pollution Prevention Violation
In August 2022, the EPA imposed a $1,906 fine on Georgia Power following an oil spill prevention inspection at an Atlanta facility that revealed deficiencies such as absence of spill prediction procedures, lack of containment strategies, and insufficient drainage controls.
Coal power
Georgia Power operates the Robert W. Scherer Power Plant located in Monroe County, Georgia. In 2006, this facility was identified as the largest single source of carbon dioxide emissions within the United States and ranked twentieth worldwide among power plants for CO2 output. It was also the sole U.S. power plant included among the world’s top 25 carbon dioxide emitters.
Transmission infrastructure
Georgia Power's transmission network functions at voltage levels of 115,000, 230,000, and 500,000 volts. The company maintains grid connections with the Tennessee Valley Authority to the north; its affiliate Alabama Power towards the west; Dominion Energy and Duke Energy along the eastern boundary; and to the south, it links with Florida Power & Light, Duke Energy, and Tallahassee utilities.
Shift toward renewable energy and closure of Plant Mitchell
Georgia Power initially pursued regulatory approval to transform the coal-powered Plant Mitchell near Albany, Georgia into a biomass facility utilizing excess wood sourced within a defined radius. This conversion was slated for 2011, with expected commissioning in mid-2012. Nevertheless, by 2014, the company revealed intentions to retire Plant Mitchell by April 2015. The plant ceased operations in 2016, and as of 2022, monitoring continues on water discharged from its ash containment area.
Power generation facilities
The company manages a portfolio of 46 power plants encompassing hydroelectric stations, fossil fuel plants, and nuclear reactors, delivering electricity to more than 2.4 million customers across nearly all counties in Georgia.
Hydroelectric power stations
Georgia Power Hydro oversees 19 hydroelectric units with a combined capacity of 1,087,536 kilowatts (kW). These installations also provide stewardship over more than 45,985 acres of water bodies and 1,057 miles of shoreline dedicated to habitat preservation and recreational use.
| Facility | Closest city | Capacity |
|---|---|---|
| Barnett Shoals Hydroelectric Generating Plant | Athens, Georgia | 2,800 kW |
| Bartletts Ferry Hydroelectric Generating Plant | Columbus, Georgia | 173,000 kW |
| Burton Hydroelectric Generating Plant | Clayton, Georgia | 6,120 kW |
| Estatoah Hydroelectric Generating Plant | Mountain City, Georgia | 240 kW |
| Flint River Hydroelectric Generating Plant | Albany, Georgia | 5,400 kW |
| Goat Rock Hydroelectric Generating Plant | Columbus, Georgia | 38,600 kW |
| Langdale Hydroelectric Generating Plant | West Point, Georgia | 1,040 kW |
| Lloyd Shoals Hydroelectric Generating Plant | Jackson, Georgia | 14,400 kW |
| Morgan Falls Hydroelectric Generating Plant | Sandy Springs, Georgia | 16,800 kW |
| Nacoochee Hydroelectric Generating Plant | Clayton, Georgia | 4,800 kW |
| North Highlands Hydroelectric Generating Plant | Columbus, Georgia | 29,600 kW |
| Oliver Dam Hydroelectric Generating Plant | Columbus, Georgia | 60,000 kW |
| Riverview Hydroelectric Generating Plant | West Point, Georgia | 480 kW |
| Rocky Mountain Hydroelectric Generating Plant | Rome, Georgia | 215,256 kW |
| Sinclair Dam Hydroelectric Generating Plant | Eatonton, Georgia | 45,000 kW |
| Tallulah Falls Hydroelectric Generating Plant | Tallulah Falls, Georgia | 72,000 kW |
| Terrora Hydroelectric Generating Plant | Tallulah Falls, Georgia | 16,000 kW |
| Tugalo Hydroelectric Generating Plant | Lakemont, Georgia | 45,000 kW |
| Wallace Dam Hydroelectric Generating Plant | Eatonton, Georgia | 321,300 kW |
| Yonah Hydroelectric Generating Plant | Lakemont, Georgia | 22,500 kW |
Fossil fuel power plants
| Plant | Closest city | Number of units | Output capacity |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bowen Steam-Electric Generating Plant (Plant Bowen) | Cartersville, Georgia | 4 | 3,160,000 kW |
| Harllee Branch Jr. Steam-Electric Generating Plant (Plant Branch) (CLOSED) | Eatonton, Georgia | 4 | 1,539,700 kW |
| William P. Hammond Steam-Electric Generating Plant | Rome, Georgia | 4 | 800,000 kW |
| Kraft Steam-Electric Generating Plant | Savannah, Georgia | 4 | 281,136 kW |
| John J. McDonough Steam-Electric Generating Plant | Smyrna, Georgia | 2 | 490,000 kW |
| McIntosh Steam-Electric Generating Plant | Savannah, Georgia | 9 | 810,000 kW |
| McIntosh Combined Cycle Plant | Rincon, Georgia | 2 | 1,240,000 kW |
| Clifford Braswall McManus Steam-Electric Generating Plant | Brunswick, Georgia | 2 | 596,000 kW |
| W. E. Mitchell Steam-Electric Generating Plant | Albany, Georgia | 4 | 243,000 kW |
| Robins Steam-Electric Generating Plant | Warner Robins, Georgia | 2 | 166,000 kW |
| Robert W. Scherer Steam-Electric Generating Plant (Plant Scherer) | Juliette, Georgia | 4 | 3,272,000 kW |
| Wansley Steam-Electric Generating Plant (Plant Wansley) | Carrollton, Georgia | 2 | 951,872 kW |
| Allen B. Wilson Combustion Turbine Plant | Waynesboro, Georgia | 354,100 kW | |
| Eugene A. Yates Steam-Electric Generating Plant | Newnan, Georgia | 2 | 700,000 kW |
Nuclear power plants
| Plant | Nearest city | Units count | Capacity output |
|---|---|---|---|
| Alvin W. Vogtle Electric Generating Plant | Waynesboro, Georgia | 4 | 4,536,000 kW |
| Edwin I. Hatch Nuclear Power Plant | Baxley, Georgia | 2 | 1,726,000 kW |