Cost overruns on the two new nuclear reactors being built at Plant Vogtle are raising concerns that Georgia Power customers will end up paying higher bills.

That’s what happened when the first two reactors were built in the 80's.  Those reactors’ original cost estimate of $660 million ballooned to $8 billion, and almost bankrupted Georgia Power. The AJC reports the current reactor project is $800 million over budget, and months behind schedule.

Former EPA administrator Christine Todd Whitman co-chairs the Clean and Safe Energy Coalition.  She says these new plants are an investment in the future.

“There are short-term costs for long-term savings that average out to be really in the rate payer’s best interest over the long run,” says Whitman.

Georgia Power customers are already paying the financing costs for the new reactors.