(The Center Square) – The Public Service Commission faced a room full of constituents Tuesday, some supporting Georgia Power’s request to increase its power generation by about 10,000 megawatts and some opposing it.
Some of the increase is due to the projected data centers across the state.
Steve Taylor, Bartow County’s sole commissioner, testified on Tuesday. He said his northwest Georgia county approved four data centers and another one is coming.
“I’m personally not afraid of data centers,” Taylor said. “They’re not noisy. We’ve require a closed loop (water system). They are not using a lot of water at all.”
Plant Bowen, one of Georgia Power’s coal-fired plants, is located in Bartow County. The utility company is asking to add two new combined cycle units with natural gas capacity at Plant Bowen. The company requested another two combined cycle units at Heard County’s Plant Wansley and one at Plant McIntosh in Effingham County.
Also included in the request is the addition of 10 battery energy storage facilities spread across eight Georgia counties.
Some speakers said they were concerned about plans to increase the use of fossil fuels to meet the energy demand. Brittany Burns is one of them.
“We have an opportunity to transition for clean, affordable, renewable energy, energy that creates jobs, protects our environment and lower costs for family,” Burns said. “The PSC has power and responsibility to hold Georgia Power accountable, to stop unjustified rate increases, and to demand a plan that prioritizes people and the planet over profits.”
Customers have complained about high utility bills. Burns said she had to choose between day care and utilities despite “making better than the above-average Atlantan.”
Georgia Power and the Public Service Commission agreed to a three-year rate freeze in July. But the utility can come back before the commission to discuss recouping costs from Hurricane Helene.
The commission is hosting two days of public testimony to hear from constituents, which wraps up at noon on Wednesday. The decision on the plan to increase its power generation will not come until mid-December, more than a month after voters decide whether to re-elect two incumbents to the board.
Commissioner Tim Echols, a Republican, who has served on the board since 2011, is being challenged by Democrat Alicia Johnson in the Nov. 4 contest. Republican Fitz Johnson, appointed to the board in 2021 by Gov. Brian Kemp, will face Peter Hubbard.
Early voting for the Public Service Commission races began on Oct. 14. As of Oct. 21, 140,959 Georgians voted early, according to the Georgia Secretary of State’s office.
