Environmental groups challenge GA PSC approval of utility expansion

Environmental groups challenge GA PSC approval of utility expansion

By Shanteya Hudson - Producer

Jan 22, 2026

According to environmental groups, Georgia Power's plan could lock ratepayers into higher utility bills for decades while expanding methane gas plants expected to operate until at least 2075. (Adobe Stock)

Environmental groups are asking Georgia utility regulators to reconsider a recent energy decision they say could shape electric bills and power generation in the state for decades.

The Sierra Club, the Southern Environmental Law Center and the Southern Alliance for Clean Energy have filed a motion urging the Georgia Public Service Commission to revisit its December approval of Georgia Power's plan to build new methane gas plants.

Isabella Ariza, a senior attorney with the Sierra Club, said the proposal raises serious questions about cost, timing, and long-term impacts on the state's communities.

"What we argued in our motion is that this is not a good time to stock up on gas resources that are extremely expensive at the moment," she said, "and ratepayers will see no benefit from doing that at this time."

Ariza pointed to the commission's own staff analysis, which estimates monthly electric bills could rise by about $20, adding up to tens of billions of dollars over the life of the projects. Another argument put forward in the motion claims Georgia Power hasn't demonstrated that all of the additional capacity it requested is needed to serve existing retail customers by 2031.

The motion also zeroes in on specific projects approved as part of the plan. One of those projects is a proposed gas unit at Plant McIntosh, which the plaintiffs say would cost customers billions of dollars. Georgia Power's own modeling shows the additional power created by the plant would exceed projected demand.

Ariza said residents across the state are voicing similar concerns about how the projects could affect their health, environment and household budgets.

"Community members are saying that they don't want to pay for gas plants that will stay online for 40 years, that will pollute their air, and that are being built to serve data centers," she said, "that instead, data centers should pay for 100% of those costs."

The groups are asking the commission to reopen the case, hold a new hearing and scale back approvals to only the power resources proven necessary for Georgia Power customers. They also want stronger safeguards to ensure existing ratepayers aren't footing the bill for speculative growth tied to large industrial users.

The Public Service Commission has not yet indicated whether it will reconsider the decision.