Georgia Power expects 6,600 MW of growth through 2030
In its latest Integrated Resource Plan (IRP) filing, Georgia Power updated its predictions of energy growth through 2030 to 6,600 MW, from approximately 400 MW originally forecasted last year.
“Georgia has continued to experience rapid economic growth since the filing of our IRP in early 2022,” Kim Greene, chairman, president and CEO of Georgia Power, said. “Many businesses coming to the state are bringing large electrical demands at both a record scale and velocity. It’s an exciting time to have the privilege to serve this great state, and this IRP Update outlines how Georgia Power can best continue supporting that historic growth while continuing to provide our customers with the clean, safe, reliable, and affordable energy they expect and deserve.”
If approved by regulators, the plan would allow the company to add generation resources to meet Georgia’s growing demands and, potentially, to add the transmission infrastructure needed to support them. Requests included a power purchase agreement with Mississippi Power, certification of a separate, natural gas-fueled PPA with Santa Rosa Energy Center LLC, expansion of Georgia Power’s own implementation of battery energy storage systems (BESS), as well as new constructions of solar/BESS systems and new simple-cycle combustion turbines, among others.
While programs approved in the 2022 IRP are still being implemented, Georgia Power added that, for its latest updates, it’s committed to cleaner resources. In fact, it expects to add approximately 10,000 MW of new renewable resources by 2035 – nearly double the 6,000 MW projected last year. Updates to BESS and other resource offerings will also help maintain reliability and resilience along the way.
