Georgia Power has taken another visible step in expanding its gas-fired generation footprint, receiving major turbine and generator equipment for Plant Yates near Atlanta. The delivery puts fresh momentum behind a project meant to support rising electricity demand across Georgia.
Heavy equipment arrives as Unit 9 takes shape
The latest delivery landed in Coweta County this week, and it was hard to miss.
Georgia Power confirmed it has received the turbine and generator for Unit 9 at Plant Yates, part of a broader expansion approved by state regulators in 2023. The equipment includes a Mitsubishi Power M501JAC simple-cycle gas turbine and a Mitsubishi Electric Power VP-X Series generator, both shipped in sections because of their sheer size.
Each turbine weighs close to 350 tons and stretches roughly 50 feet long. Seeing it up close is like watching a freight train without wheels. Crews coordinated road closures, cranes, and escorts to move the machinery safely onto the site.
This delivery follows the arrival of similar equipment for Unit 8 back in August. Components for Unit 10 are expected early next year, keeping the construction schedule on track.
A 1,300-megawatt boost approved by regulators
Once Units 8, 9, and 10 are finished, Plant Yates will add about 1,300 megawatts of new generation capacity to Georgia Power’s system.
That figure matters.
Georgia’s population keeps growing, data centers are popping up across metro Atlanta, and industrial loads are rising. State regulators signed off on the new turbines through the Georgia Public Service Commission’s 2023 Integrated Resource Plan update, clearing the way for construction.
The units are expected to enter service by the end of 2027, according to the company.
The turbines are built for speed and flexibility, a point Georgia Power executives have stressed repeatedly. Each unit can start up in roughly 30 minutes and can switch to oil if natural gas supply is disrupted, which adds a layer of resilience during extreme weather or supply crunches.
One engineer involved in the project described them as “fast responders,” meant to step in when demand spikes suddenly.
Inside the technology behind the expansion
The new equipment brings modern design into a plant that first went online in 1950.
The generators paired with the turbines are hydrogen-cooled and rated at 583 megavolt-amperes each. Georgia Power says their efficiency reaches about 99%, a figure that reflects advances in cooling and electrical design over the past decade.
To put the expansion into perspective, the key technical details stack up like this:
| Component | Specification |
|---|---|
| Turbine model | Mitsubishi Power M501JAC |
| Turbine weight | ~350 tons |
| Turbine size | ~50 ft long, 18 ft wide |
| Start-up time | ~30 minutes |
| Generator rating | 583 MVA |
| Cooling method | Hydrogen-cooled |
| Efficiency | ~99% |
There is a practical reason Georgia Power opted for simple-cycle turbines rather than combined-cycle units here.
Simple-cycle plants can start and stop quickly. That makes them useful for balancing the grid, especially as renewable energy output rises and demand patterns get less predictable, you know, hour to hour.
Jobs, local impact, and a changing plant identity
Construction at Plant Yates is also reshaping the local job market, at least for a while.
The expansion is creating about 600 construction jobs during peak activity. Once all three units are operating, the plant is expected to add 15 permanent positions, bringing total full-time staffing to around 75 employees.
For Coweta County, those numbers carry weight.
Plant Yates has long been part of the area’s industrial backbone. Opened in 1950, it once relied heavily on coal. That chapter began closing in 2014, when five of its seven coal-fired units were shut down and the remaining two were converted to natural gas.
The site today looks very different from what longtime workers remember.
Steel stacks are fewer. Emissions controls are tighter. Control rooms feel more like tech hubs than old-school power stations.
Change has been slow, but steady.
Natural gas remains central to Georgia Power’s mix
Natural gas now supplies about 40% of Georgia Power’s annual energy generation, according to company figures.
That share reflects years of fuel switching across the Southeast, driven by lower gas prices, environmental rules, and the need for flexible generation. Coal’s role has shrunk. Nuclear and renewables fill other parts of the mix.
Plant Yates is not the only site seeing upgrades.
Georgia Power is also moving ahead with improvements at Plant McIntosh near Savannah, where an additional 268 megawatts of capacity are planned. Together, these projects signal that gas-fired generation will remain a core pillar for the utility for years to come.
The company serves roughly 2.8 million customers across 155 of Georgia’s 159 counties, a footprint that keeps expanding as suburbs stretch outward.
Southern Company context and market backdrop
Georgia Power is a subsidiary of Southern Company, one of the largest electric utilities in the United States.
Southern Company reported $28.91 billion in revenue and $4.46 billion in net income over the past twelve months, with EBITDA totaling $13.81 billion. Its market value stands at about $93.6 billion, placing it firmly among heavyweight utility operators.
Recent months have brought plenty of movement around the parent company.
Southern completed a $2 billion equity units offering, including the full exercise of an over-allotment option by underwriters. The deal involved 40 million equity units priced at $50 each and is expected to influence the company’s capital structure going forward.
On the regulatory side, Georgia Power has reached a tentative agreement with the Georgia Public Service Commission’s Public Interest Advocacy Staff that could lower customer costs. If approved, typical residential customers could save around $102 annually, based on company estimates.
Analysts, meanwhile, have been adjusting their outlooks.
RBC Capital trimmed its price target on Southern Company to $99 from $107 while keeping a Sector Perform rating. Jefferies maintained a Hold rating with a $103 target, pointing to better visibility around electricity demand in Georgia. Goldman Sachs moved in the opposite direction, downgrading the stock from Buy to Neutral and cutting its target to $98, citing higher regulatory uncertainty after changes in the PSC’s composition.
Those shifts underline the push and pull utilities face: rising demand on one side, regulatory scrutiny on the other.
A long arc from coal to flexible gas generation
Plant Yates tells a broader story about how power generation in the Southeast has changed.
From coal-heavy beginnings in the mid-20th century to gas-focused flexibility today, the site mirrors an industry trying to keep up with growth, weather extremes, and policy pressure, basically all at once.
The arrival of Unit 9’s turbine and generator does not grab headlines like a merger or a blackout. Still, it marks steady progress on infrastructure that most customers never see but depend on every day.
