Toshiba is in talks with SCANA and Santee Cooper to potentially and permanently take over the management future operations at the V.C. Summer plants, where two AP1000 reactors are being installed, according to judicial filings.
That revelation is contained in a footnote to recently filed court documents by Toshiba subsidiary Westinghouse, which is in Chapter 11 bankruptcy. It's the first public mention of a possible takeover at V.C. Summer.
"Toshiba is currently in discussions with the V.C. Summer Owners in an effort to reach a resolution similar to the Vogtle Settlement," court records state.
The acknowledgment differs from a recent public statement from a SCANA spokesperson, who said a specific course of action relating to V.C. Summer hasn't been decided. SCANA is the parent company of South Carolina Electric & Gas, or SCE&G.
"We are undergoing a thorough analysis and evaluation that includes a broad range of considerations as we work to determine the most prudent path forward for the project," SCANA spokeswoman Rhonda O'Banion said in a June 21 email.
"Once we’ve completed our evaluation process, we plan to go before the Public Service Commission of South Carolina for a full review and assessment of our evaluation before making a final commitment to any course of action," the statement continued. "In the meantime, roughly 5,000 workers continue to make progress with construction of the new units."
News of a possible V.C. Summer takeover comes on the heels of a hearing request environmental groups filed seeking a shutdown of further expansion at the Fairfield County site.
A hearing request filed Thursday by Friends of the Earth and the S.C. Chapter of the Sierra Club has been granted by the S.C. Public Service Commission.
"(Friends of the Earth) and Sierra Club request that the Commission order and direct SCE&G to cease and desist from expending any further capital costs related to the Project," the filing states.
An Aug. 14 hearing has been scheduled.
"I'm shocked they got this up so fast," said Tom Clements with Savannah River Site Watch, a nuclear watchdog group. "I'm stunned."
Friends of the Earth and the Sierra Club referred to "unreasonable electric rates," referring to SCE&G's nine electric rate hikes since 2008 to help fund V.C. Summer.
The rate hikes account for nearly 20 percent of a typical residential customer's bill. SCE&G has about 54,000 electrical customers in Aiken County, according to the utility's website.
Westinghouse is the lead contractor at V.C. Summer and Plant Vogtle, where twin AP1000 reactors are being built. But cost overruns and delays have dug the plants into multi-million dollar holes.
As part of its Chapter 11 reorganization strategy, Westinghouse filed a motion late Thursday seeking an order that would essentially lay the framework for various Georgia stakeholders to formally take over operations at Vogtle.
Georgia Power said on May 12 it had an agreement in principle to take over plant operations at the Burke County, Georgia facility.
With Westinghouse seeking a similar arrangement for V.C. Summer, if finalized it would transfer plant management to majority owner SCANA and Santee Cooper. Both utilities already have been temporarily footing the bill at V.C. Summer as part of an interim assessment agreement that expires Monday, June 26.
A similar assessment agreement at Vogtle that was set to expire June 22 also has been temporarily extended to June 26, court documents state.
"The Vogtle Settlement represents a key step in the Debtors’ broader ongoing restructuring process, as it helps provide a path towards the Debtors’ successful exit from these Chapter 11 cases for the benefit of the Debtors’ estates and all parties in interest," the Westinghouse motion states.
