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Former SCANA CEO Will Land in Prison as Result of V.C. Summer Nuclear Project

October 17, 2021

Kevin B. Marsh, former CEO of SCANA Corp., was sentenced to two years in federal prison after pleading guilty to conspiracy to commit mail and wire fraud related to the V.C. Summer nuclear expansion project.

Marsh is the first defendant in the case to be sentenced as a result of the investigation. However, the U.S. Attorney’s Office has obtained felony guilty pleas from Stephen Byrne, former executive vice president of SCANA and former COO of South Carolina Electric & Gas Co. (SCE&G), and Carl Churchman, former vice president with Westinghouse Electric Corp. and the project director of the V.C. Summer nuclear project. It has also charged Jeffrey Benjamin, former senior vice president with Westinghouse, in a 16-count felony criminal indictment. Benjamin maintains his innocence, however, and Acting U.S. Attorney for the District of South Carolina M. Rhett DeHart has said all charges against him are merely accusations—the defendant is presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty.

In the case of Marsh, however, the evidence presented in court “showed that he intentionally defrauded ratepayers while overseeing and managing SCANA’s operations—including the construction of two reactors at the V.C.…

Former Westinghouse Executive Charged with Conspiracy, Fraud in Connection with V.C. Summer Nuclear Project

August 24, 2021

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The post Former Westinghouse Executive Charged with Conspiracy, Fraud in Connection with V.C. Summer Nuclear Project appeared first on POWER Magazine.

Former Westinghouse Electric Co. Senior Vice President Jeffrey A. Benjamin was charged with 16 felony counts, including conspiracy, wire fraud, securities fraud, and causing a publicly traded company to keep a false record, for his part in failing to truthfully report information regarding construction of new nuclear units at the V.C. Summer nuclear plant in South Carolina.

Benjamin is the fourth individual to be charged in the ongoing federal investigation. Former SCANA CEO Kevin Marsh, former SCANA Executive Vice President Stephen Byrne, and former Westinghouse Vice President Carl Churchman have all pleaded guilty to federal felony charges for their roles in the matter. However, in a statement, Acting U.S. Attorney for the District of South Carolina M. Rhett DeHart noted that all charges against Benjamin are merely accusations, and that the defendant is presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty.…

UPDATED: SCANA, Santee Cooper Abandon V.C. Summer AP1000 Nuclear Units, Citing High Costs

August 1, 2017

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SCANA Corp. and Santee Cooper have ceased construction of Units 2 and 3 at the V.C. Summer Nuclear Station in South Carolina.

The project owners said the decision, prompted by analysis of detailed schedule and cost data, would save customers nearly $ 7 billion. The project, which was about 64% complete, has been in limbo since key contractor Westinghouse filed for bankruptcy in March.

The decision comes just days after Westinghouse’s parent company Toshiba agreed to pay the two project owners nearly $ 2.2 billion to cap its liabilities from the unfinished nuclear project. Toshiba reached a similar $ 3.7 billion agreement with Southern Co. in June as it seeks to limit its liabilities from the Vogtle project. Both AP1000 nuclear projects are years behind schedule and billions of dollars over budget.

Construction continues at the two Vogtle AP1000 units in Georgia. A project owner, Georgia Power, on July 28 told POWER that it expects to complete the cost-to-complete and schedule assessment by the end of August.…

SCANA, Santee Cooper Buy More Time for V.C. Summer Decision

June 27, 2017

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SCANA Corp. subsidiary South Carolina Electric & Gas Co. (SCG&E) and Santee Cooper—owners of the two-unit expansion of the V.C. Summer nuclear plant—have extended an interim assessment agreement with Westinghouse to allow the project’s owners to “continue to make progress on the site.”

The companies on June 26 extended the agreement to August 10, but it is subject to bankruptcy court approval.

“The agreement extension allows the co-owners additional time to maintain all of their options by continuing construction on the project, while examining all of the relevant information for a thorough and careful assessment to determine the most prudent path forward,” the project owners said.

“The goal is to reach a decision in the third quarter.”

A Hard Decision to Make

SCE&G and Santee Cooper have worked with Westinghouse to reach agreement on the project even before the Toshiba company filed for bankruptcy protection in late March. Westinghouse cited liquidity crisis stemming from losses at the V.C. Summer and Vogtle AP1000 projects for its financial collapse.…

Vogtle, V.C. Summer Project Owners Buy More Time to Mull Fate of Nuclear Units

May 1, 2017

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The owners of the Vogtle and V.C. Summer nuclear expansions separately secured a few more weeks to allow work to continue onsite at each project while they decide how to proceed with the half-built AP1000 reactors after Westinghouse’s financial debacle.

In Georgia, owners of the project to expand Plant Vogtle extended an interim assessment agreement with Westinghouse until May 12. But Georgia Power’s parent company Southern Co. also revealed it is negotiating a new service agreement that could engage Westinghouse to provide design, engineering, and procurement services in the event Southern Nuclear Operating Co.—Southern Co.’s nuclear unit operations arm—takes over management of construction at Units 3 and 4.

And in South Carolina, owners of the project to expand V.C. Summer extended a similar agreement through June 26. The project owners detailed their concerns and options in a recent ex parte briefing at the South Carolina Public Service Commission (PSC)

Vogtle Agreement Extended Until May 12

Georgia Power and Vogtle’s other owners on April 28 extended an interim assessment agreement with Westinghouse before it was set to expire, giving them until May 12 to assess the project.…