Plant operators safely removed Unit 1 of the Alvin W. Vogtle Electric Generating Plant offline Sunday, Sept. 16, at 5 a.m. ET for the scheduled fall 2018 refueling outage. The severe weather resulting from Hurricane Florence had no impact on the scheduled refueling outage activities.

Each of the two units at Plant Vogtle requires new fuel every 18 months. The most recent refueling outage for Unit 1 was completed in the spring of 2017.

In addition to refueling the reactor during the outage, workers will perform regular maintenance, testing and upgrades to plant equipment.

"Safety is our number one priority during the refueling outage," said Darin Myers, site vice president for Vogtle units 1 and 2. "A safe and successful outage is achieved through the focus of the entire organization – our employees and our supporting partners. The station has planned for this refueling outage for over a year. This planning ensures the activities are coordinated to ensure safety is maintained at the highest level."

Southern Company subsidiary Southern Nuclear operates Plant Vogtle on behalf of Georgia Power and the plant's other Georgia co-owners. Employees from across the Southern Nuclear fleet as well as nearly 1,300 additional workers from Georgia Power, Westinghouse, General Electric, Day & Zimmermann and other companies have come to the plant to assist the site employees in completing the multiple tasks required to ensure the unit will run safely and reliably for the next 18 months.

These additional workers provide considerable economic stimulus to surrounding communities during their stay in the area.

Vogtle Unit 2 continues to safely generate electricity while Unit 1 is offline and refueling.