Washington (Platts)--22May2009

Friends of the Earth said it filed an appeal May 22 with the South
Carolina Supreme Court over state regulators' approvals for two new
Westinghouse AP1000s at the Summer reactor site. The group is challenging the
legality of the South Carolina Public Service Commission's decision in
February to permit South Carolina Electric & Gas to build the two new units
and to begin recovering some of the costs from ratepayers during construction.
The PSC in March denied FOE's appeal of its decision. In a statement, FOE said
the filing is the first legal challenge to South Carolina's Baseload Review
Act and a decision made under it. The Baseload Review Act, passed in 2007,
provides for early cost recovery for nuclear power plant projects.