2023-03-06 16:57:10 ET
Southern's ( NYSE: SO ) Georgia Power said Monday it safely reached initial criticality at its Vogtle Unit 3 reactor , a necessary step in continuing to the startup of the unit in order to generate sufficient heat for the production of electricity.
The successful step during the startup testing sequence demonstrates for the first time that operators have safely started the nuclear reaction inside the reactor, which means atoms are being split and nuclear heat is being made, which will be used to produce steam.
Now that Unit 3 has reached criticality, the company said operators will continue to raise power to support synchronizing the generator to the electric grid and begin producing electricity; operators will continue increasing power through multiple steps, ultimately raising power to 100%.
Southern's ( SO ) decline in profit margins "was significant but is still manageable and should be considered temporary," Deep Value Ideas writes in an analysis posted recently on Seeking Alpha .
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Southern's Vogtle Unit 3 achieves 'initial criticality'