AUGUSTA - Who should pay for dredging the Savannah River in connection with Georgia Power's plans to expand the Vogtle nuclear power plant is one of many unanswered questions surrounding this controversial project.

With parts of the nuclear plants expected to be built well offsite, transporting the huge units is an issue. The Savannah River is looking like the most viable option, said Dr. Frank Carl, executive director for the environmental group Savannah Riverkeeper Inc. The group watches the river, developments along it and issues reports about the health of the river as well as overseeing some river activities.

If the river is to become a superhighway for a super power plant, it's going to have to be dredged, Carl said. So, who will pay for what will be a several million dollar project to deepen the river channel?

"We're trying to get Georgia Power to pay for it," Carl said Friday while escorting the Georgia Outdoor Writers Association on a guided boat tour of the river. "It's going to have to be a Corps of Engineers project."

If Georgia Power foots all or part of the bill, that cost will eventually be passed along to Georgia Power customers through utility bills. With Gov. Sonny Perdue signing SB 31, Georgia Power now has the right to add a bit to power bills to utility customers. That additional money will be banked to help cover the costs of the nuclear plant expansion.

If Georgia Power can't be forced or persuaded to pick up all or part of the river dredging work, then the cost will be shifted to taxpayers. As the river is already an important commercial thoroughfare for Georgia and South Carolina, it's possible the two states will be asked to pick up part of the tab. Dredging the river will make it easier for commercial barge traffic to use the river.

Since the dredging will be a Corps of Engineer project, as Carl said, it's also possible federal dollars will pay for the work.

Georgia Power lobbied the Public Service Commission for new nuclear plants for Vogtle since 2006. Georgia Power asked the PSC to begin billing utility customers ahead of time for the power plants in order to front-load the cost of construction. The power company reasoned that by banking money now, it would have to borrow less later. Less borrowing means less interest to be paid out which in turns translate to cheaper electrical generation costs, the power company argued.

Since the PSC didn't accept that, the company that supplies electricity to at least part of most Georgia counties turned to the General Assembly. Senate Bill 31 passed both houses of the Legislature and Perdue signed off on it.