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USDA announced a record $3.3 billion loan for Oglethorpe Power’s gas-powered electric generation facility in Monroe County, Georgia.
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The financing gives Oglethorpe Power lower-cost capital for a major generation project at a time when utilities are adding infrastructure to meet higher electricity demand.
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The facility is projected to come online in 2029 and produce enough electricity for an estimated 800,000 homes.
The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) announced a record $3.3 billion loan Oct. 14 for Oglethorpe Power’s Smarr combined-cycle facility in Monroe County, Georgia.
Oglethorpe Power said the megaproject will be among Georgia’s highest-performing, lowest-emitting and most efficient natural gas-powered electric plants. The company serves 38 EMCs or utility cooperatives that represent nearly five million Georgians.
Oglethorpe Power Project Details for Monroe County, Ga.
Fuel - Natural Gas
Facility type - Combined-cycle gas turbine
Capacity - 1,425 Megawatts
Units - Two
Technology - GE Vernova 7HA.03 gas turbines
EPC Partner - The Industrial Company (TIC), a subsidiary of Kiewit Corp.
USDA Secretary Brooke L. Rollins announced the financing during a visit to the construction site. The agency described the loan as the largest in the history of USDA Rural Utilities Service in its press release.
The facility is intended to provide dependable, affordable power and strengthen Georgia’s electric grid as energy demand grows.
Oglethorpe said the combined-cycle natural gas facility is projected to come online in 2029 and produce enough electricity for an estimated 800,000 homes.
US Interest in Power Infrastructure Spurs Federal Investments
The announcement comes as utilities are upgrading transmission and distribution systems while adding generation capacity and preparing for rising electricity demand.
ConstructConnect Associate Economist Devin Bell said, "The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) loan of $3.3 billion to Oglethorpe Power is the largest in the history of its Rural Utilities Service, joining a number of recent power projects to receive federal lending."
"Earlier in 2026, the Department of Energy (DOE) loaned $26.5 billion for power infrastructure in Georgia and Alabama and up to $3.3 billion for grid modernization in Texas," Bell added.
"Together, these loans show the role the federal government is taking in developing the future of U.S. power infrastructure."
A rendering of Oglethorpe Power’s Smarr combined-cycle electric generating facility in Monroe County, Georgia. Image: Oglethorpe Power
Loan Supports Large-Scale Grid Investment
The financing gives Oglethorpe Power lower-cost capital for a major generation project at a time when utilities are adding infrastructure to meet higher electricity demand.
“This project strengthens the nation’s electrical grid,” USDA said, adding that the loan will help keep electricity affordable for Georgia families.
Oglethorpe Power’s project material identifies Kiewit subsidiary The Industrial Company, or TIC, as the Engineering, Procurement, and Construction (EPC) partner and projects commercial operation in 2029.
The Smarr facility is under construction off Rumble Road near an existing Oglethorpe energy facility in Forsyth, Monroe County, south of Atlanta. Oglethorpe Power held a ceremonial groundbreaking for the project May 7, 2026.
Oglethorpe Power supplies wholesale electricity to 38 Georgia Electric Membership Cooperatives, or EMCs, that serve nearly five million Georgians. Its portfolio includes natural gas, coal, nuclear and hydroelectric resources. The Smarr project will add another large-scale generation asset to that system.
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