Georgia Power and Westinghouse say they have, in principle, reached a new service agreement for work on the two-unit Vogtle nuclear power plant expansion.

Under terms of the deal, project management will move from Westinghouse to Southern Nuclear and Georgia Power. The shift hinges on rejection of the current engineering, procurement, and construction contract as part of Westinghouse's Chapter 11 bankruptcy reorganization.

(Read "Westinghouse Nuclear Files for U.S. Bankruptcy Protection.")

Georgia Power says that an interim assessment agreement will remain in place until June 3 while the new service agreement is finalized and all approvals are obtained. During this time, work will continue at the site and a transition of project management will begin.

Georgia Power says it will take "all actions necessary" to hold Westinghouse and its parent Toshiba accountable for their financial obligations.

Georgia Power says it will continue work to complete its full-scale schedule and cost-to-complete analysis and work with the project co-owners (Oglethorpe Power, MEAG Power and Dalton Utilities) and the Georgia Public Service Commission to determine the best path forward for the multi-billion-dollar construction project.