Plant Vogtle Unit 3 shut down by 'valve issue'

ATLANTA — One of the two newest nuclear reactors at Georgia Power's Plant Vogtle has been shut down due to a "valve issue," the Atlanta-based utility announced Tuesday.

Operators at the plant's Unit 3 safely shut down the reactor on July 8 due to lowering water levels in the steam generators caused by a problem with a valve on one of three main pumps. The main pumps send water that has been heated from the condenser through a series of heaters to be sent back to the steam generators.

The valve that caused the problem controls water levels in the steam generator.

"Operators responded in accordance with their training and the plant, including all safety systems, responded as designed," Georgia Power spokesman Jacob Hawkins wrote in an email to Capitol Beat. "At no time was the safety of the employees or community at risk."

Unit 3 at the plant south of Augusta went into full commercial operation last July. The second of the new reactors - Unit 4 - followed in April of this year.

The first nuclear reactors built in the United States in more than three decades were delayed by seven years amid a series of cost overruns caused in part by the bankruptcy of Westinghouse, the original prime contractor on the project, and the COVID-19 pandemic, which forced the construction team to reduce its workforce by 20% as a safety precaution.

Georgia Power did not reveal when Unit 3 will be returned to service, citing "competitive reasons."