Plants Kraft, McManus part of Georgia Power's statewide decommissioning plans
Georgia Power plans to close Plant Kraft in 2016 as part of a statewide strategy to decommission cost-prohibitive coal and oil-fired power generation stations, the utility announced Monday.
Plant Kraft, located in Port Wentworth, includes three coal-fired units and one oil-fired generator. Georgia Power will also retire two locally based combustion turbine generators as well as both units at Plant McManus inBrunswick.
The closures will impact 150 workers in the Coastal Region, although the utility does not anticipate layoffs.
“No one will lose his or her job,” Georgia Power spokeswoman Swann Seiler said. “We will shrink the workforce over the next few years through attrition, transfers and relocations.”
Georgia Power will request approval to shutter Plants Kraft and McManus as well as units in Putnam and Coweta counties from the Public Services Commission later this month. The 15 units scheduled for decommission together generate 2,061 megawatts.
Georgia Power will replace that energy through other coal plants, hydroelectricity and nuclear power. The new reactors at Plant Vogtle are schedule to begin operations in 2017.
“Every few years we redo our strategy for the future,” Seiler said. “The units we are decertifying we anticipate will be too expensive to operate.”
All the units except those at Plant Kraft will be retired in April 2015. Georgia Power plants to keep Plant Kraft online through April 2016 because of maintenance and upgrades planned for the area, Seiler said.
Pick up Tuesday's Savannah Morning News or check savannahnow.com later Monday for more on this story