23 Jun (NucNet): Environmental groups Friends of the Earth (FOE) and the Sierra Club have filed a petition to the South Carolina Public Service Commission (PSC) against further spending on the construction of the Virgil C. Summer nuclear units 2 and 3, FOE said in a statement. The statement said the new-build project in South Carolina has incurred cost overruns and its continuation risks causing “massive” electricity price hikes. FOE said it had repeatedly warned about financial and technical problems with the project since the PSC approved it in 2009. FOE said a recent report by Morgan Stanley showed the overall cost of the Summer new-build project could reach $22.9bn (€20.5bn), which is “twice over” the original cost calculation. In May 2017, the project’s majority-owner South Carolina Electricity & Gas (SCG&E) said the two-unit expansion of the Summer nuclear station is more than 64% complete. The company said at the time that the estimated completion dates for the two Westinghouse AP1000 pressurised water reactor units remained unchanged, but would be re-evaluated in light of Westinghouse's March 2017 bankruptcy filing. In April 2017, Westinghouse notified SCG&E that the cost estimate of completing Summer could rise by another $1.5bn, out of which $829m, or 55%, would represent SCG&E’s share of the price hike. The remaining 45%, or $671m, would be charged to Santee Cooper, Summer’s minority-owner. According to the initial construction and procurement contract signed in 2008, the cost of the Summer expansion project was estimated at $9.8bn. According to US media reports, Summer’s total cost estimate stood at $14bn in October 2016.
