Georgia Public Service Commission’s IRP Decision Reduces Prior Commitments to Energy-Saving Programs and Extends Life of Coal-Burning Plants
The Commission’s Final Decision Locks the State Into Continued Dependence on Coal and Unpredictable Bills Driven by Volatile Gas Pricing
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
July 15, 2025
Atlanta, GA– Today, the Georgia Public Service Commission approved a stipulated agreement filed by Georgia Power last week in their Integrated Resource Plan (IRP) docket. In its final decision, the Commission allowed Georgia Power to increase its fossil fuel capacity to meet growing energy demands in the state, leaving communities more vulnerable to unpredictable gas pricing, which is passed along to customers through their utility bills. Vote Solar and Georgia WAND co-intervened in the 2025 IRP to highlight affordability issues facing Georgia Power customers and advocate for better access to renewable energy resources like solar.
In its decision, the Commission allows Georgia Power to fall short of its own energy and cost-saving commitments by approving a drastically lower demand-side management (DSM) target than previously ordered. The much-reduced DSM target of 0.51%, fails to meet the Commission’s earlier order requiring Georgia Power to “propose and support” a target of at least 0.75% in this 2025 IRP docket. DSM programs help Georgians reduce their energy usage, cutting their utility bills, and lowering overall demand on the utility’s energy grid. The Commission’s decision also allows Georgia Power to postpone the retirement of coal burning power plants that they previously said they would retire earlier in the 2022 IRP.
“Georgia Power profited more per customer in 2024 than any other large utility company in the country, and instead of planning for an affordable, cleaner, and more stable energy future, Georgia Power is locking ratepayers into decades of fossil fuel dependence and unpredictable utility bills,” said Allison Kvien, Vote Solar’s Southeast Regulatory Director. “This decision doubles down on expensive fossil resources like coal and reduces previous commitments to important programs that can save families money all while Georgians are already struggling to keep up with at least six rate hikes the Commission has approved in recent years.”
“In the final brief that Vote Solar and Georgia WAND filed with the Commission, we offered a number of policy solutions, backed by expert testimony, that could have helped address affordability and renewable energy access in the state. The Commission chose not to enact any of them in their decision today,” said Kim Scott, Georgia WAND’s Executive Director. “The Commission had a real opportunity to make a meaningful difference and move Georgia to a clean energy economy, but instead, they simply approved what Georgia Power filed without any adjustments.”
Georgia Power and the Commission staff filed a stipulated settlement agreement at 4 p.m. on July 9, just hours before intervenors delivered their closing statements the next morning on July 10th. With many advocates traveling to the hearing, there was little to no opportunity to review the agreement before intervenors delivered their final closing statements to the Commission. The majority of intervenors were not invited to meaningfully participate in these settlement discussions, as evidenced by just Georgia Power and staff being the sole parties to the originally filed stipulated agreement. Two days after the original agreement was filed, a few additional signatories were added on post-hoc.
“The entire settlement process, where Georgia Power fails to bring all stakeholders to the table to have open and collaborative discussions, needs to be improved,” said Andrea Jones, Georgia WAND’s Government Relations and Public Policy Director.
“Georgia Power’s settlement agreements this year, in both their rate case and in the IRP, were made behind closed doors,” Kvien added. “Most other utilities we’ve worked with collaboratively engage with all intervenors early and much more meaningfully, long before final decisions are made. Georgia Power stands in sharp contrast to these utilities by selectively choosing who is invited to the table and filing agreements mere hours before intervenors have the opportunity to give their final statements in a docket.”
“The Commission should have the courage to hold Georgia Power accountable to its own previous orders and commitments and the state should prioritize cleaner, more affordable options like solar over extending the life of coal plants,” said Scott. “Georgians deserve an energy plan that puts them first, not profit-driven interests.”
About Vote Solar
Vote Solar is an energy justice non-profit working towards a 100% clean energy future by bringing solar to the mainstream. Founded in 2002, Vote Solar advocates for clean energy in legislative and regulatory arenas at the state level, where most decisions about electricity are made. Despite powerful opposition, we use a winning combination of deep policy expertise, coalition building, and public engagement to get the job done.
About Georgia WAND
Georgia WAND is a non-profit organization dedicated to environmental and social justice across Georgia. They focus on nuclear harm reduction, environmental protection, and climate justice, particularly advocating for frontline communities in Southeast Georgia, such as Burke County—home to Plant Vogtle, a commercial nuclear power facility, and downwind from the Savannah River Site, a nuclear weapons and waste facility. Additionally, Georgia WAND supports energy-burdened communities in Atlanta, where residents face soaring utility bills that fund nuclear expansion in Burke County. Georgia WAND’s mission is to amplify these voices, drive systemic change, and build a more just and sustainable future.