Westinghouse AP1000® Reactor Marks New Era for Nuclear Energy in the United States
Cranberry Township, PA – March 6, 2023 – Westinghouse Electric Company today celebrates an important milestone for Southern Nuclear, Georgia Power, and other project partners as Plant Vogtle 3 achieved the initial criticality of self-sustaining nuclear fission. Plant Vogtle, located near Waynesboro, GA, is the site of the first two AP1000® reactors to be built in the U.S.
Vogtle Unit 3 from February 2023.
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“We are honored to share this incredible moment with Southern Nuclear, Georgia Power and the project’s co-owners, and with the entire team at Vogtle,” said Patrick Fragman, Westinghouse President and CEO. “This is a significant step toward delivering clean, reliable and safe power to the people of Georgia for generations to come.”
Westinghouse will continue to work closely with the team as Southern Nuclear prepares for the next major milestone of synchronizing the unit to the electric grid, which will be followed by full commercial operation.
The two AP1000 units nearing completion at Plant Vogtle are Generation III+ reactors with fully passive safety systems, modular construction design and have the smallest footprint per MWe on the market. They are the first new reactors to be constructed in the U.S. in three decades.
In addition to the two reactors at the Vogtle site, four AP1000 units are currently setting operational performance records in China with four additional reactors under construction, and two more planned. Poland recently selected the AP1000 reactor for its nuclear energy program, and nine units have been announced for Ukraine, and the technology is under consideration at multiple other sites in Central and Eastern Europe, the United Kingdom, and in the United States.
