Georgia Power announced the heaviest lift of the Plant Vogtle expansion project to date – the placement of the CA01 module for Unit 3.

Weighing 2.28 million pounds (1,140 tons, the CA01) module is 70 feet tall and 80 feet wide. The CA01 module was assembled onsite in the modular assembly building (MAB), moved to the nuclear island as one piece and lifted into place Saturday by a 560-foot tall heavy lift derrick, one of the largest cranes in the world.

The CA01 module, made entirely of steel, will house two steam generators for Unit 3 in addition to other equipment. The second of these steam generators arrived from South Korea in June.

This milestone is the latest in a series of recent construction highlights including concrete placement on the west side of the Unit 3 Shield Building to an elevation of 94 feet; Unit 4 CA04 module placement in June; and concrete placement for the Unit 3 Annex Building basemat. Georgia Power also recently announced the completion of multiple transmission upgrades and installations at the site in preparation to connect the new units to Georgia’s power grid.

The expansion at Plant Vogtle is part of Georgia Power’s long-term, strategic plan for providing safe, clean, reliable and affordable energy for Georgians well into the future. Once units 3 and 4 join the existing two Vogtle units already in operation, Plant Vogtle is expected to generate more electricity than any U.S. nuclear facility, enough to power more than one million homes and businesses in Georgia.

Southern Nuclear, a subsidiary of Southern Company, is overseeing construction and will operate the two new 1,100-megawatt AP1000 units for Georgia Power and co-owners Oglethorpe Power Corporation, the Municipal Electric Authority of Georgia and Dalton Utilities. Georgia Power owns 45.7 percent of the new units.