Plant Vogtle
The Vogtle Electric Generating Plant is one of Georgia Power's two nuclear facilities and is one of three nuclear facilities in the Southern Company system. Plant Vogtle is co-owned between Georgia Power, Oglethorpe Power Corporation, Municipal Electric Authority of Georgia and Dalton Utilities. Unit 1 began commercial operation in 1987 and Unit 2 in 1989. The company recently achieved commercial operation on Vogtle Units 3&4, historically making Plant Vogtle the largest generator of clean energy in the U.S. Unit 3 entered commercial operation on July 31, 2023, and Unit 4 entered commercial operation on April 29, 2024. Over 1,700 people oversee the site’s safe and reliable operation.
Location:
Waynesboro, Georgia
Reactor type:
Westinghouse 4-loop
Pressurized Water Reactor
Number of units:
4
Total generating capacity:
Approximately
4,800 megawatts.
How It Works
Plant Vogtle 3 & 4
Plant Vogtle Units 3&4 have achieved commercial operation and are the first new nuclear units built in the United States in the last three decades.
Who was Alvin Vogtle?
The Vogtle Electric Generating Plant is named for Alvin W. Vogtle Jr., past Chairman of the Board of Southern Company. He was elected President of Southern Company in 1969, Chief Executive Officer in 1970 and Chairman of the Board in 1983.
The discipline and determination which characterized Mr. Vogtle’s work at Southern Company were defined during World War II after he was captured by the Germans and made a prisoner of war. During 26 months of confinement, he tried to escape on five separate occasions. On his sixth attempt, he reached the Swiss border, scaled a 15-foot-high barbed wire fence, and crossed the Rhine River to Switzerland and freedom. In 1963, United Artists produced “The Great Escape,” a film which was based in part on Mr. Vogtle’s war-time experiences.
After being captured in North Africa, Lt. Vogtle was transported to a prisoner-of-war camp in the heart of Germany. He escaped after six months of imprisonment, but he was recaptured in the Czechoslovakian town of Bakov.
From Luft Stalag III, he made three more unsuccessful escape attempts. Then, on January 27, 1945, the Germans evacuated the camp and sent the prisoners by boxcar to Moosburg, Germany. Lt. Vogtle escaped from the train but was recaptured in Dunharr. He was sent to Moosburg for imprisonment but, in only a few weeks, he made his sixth and final escape through southern Germany to Diepoldsau, Switzerland.
Schedule a Site Visit
If you would like to schedule a site visit or informative presentation for your school group, civic group or other group, please contact the Vogtle Energy Education Center staff at veec@southernco.com.
Take a Virtual Tour
Click here to tour virtually.
Stay Prepared
Southern Nuclear’s top priority is the health and safety of our plant neighbors. If you reside within the 10-mile emergency planning zone, we want you to be informed about the types of emergencies that can occur, how you can stay informed and how to protect your family.
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