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Plant Vogtle and Georgia's Energy Future, with Kelley Balkcom, Georgia Power

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Plant Vogtle and Georgia’s Energy Future, with Kelley Balkcom, Georgia Power (GNFCC 400 Insider, Episode 103)

In this episode of the GNFCC 400 Insider, Kali Boatright, President and CEO of the Greater North Fulton Chamber of Commerce, interviews Kelley Balkcom, Region Executive for Georgia Power. They discuss the pivotal role of Plant Vogtle in securing Georgia’s energy future, highlighting its significance as the first new nuclear unit built in the U.S. in over three decades. Kelley shares insights about her background, Georgia Power’s integrated resource planning, the challenges and successes of developing Plant Vogtle’s new units, and the importance of diverse energy sources. They also touch on Georgia’s distinction as the “best state to do business,” workforce development, and what North Fulton residents and businesses can expect from these advancements.

The GNFCC 400 Insider is presented by the Greater North Fulton Chamber of Commerce and produced by John Ray and the North Fulton affiliate of Business RadioX®.

Kelley Balkcom, Region Executive, Georgia Power

Kelley Balkcom serves as the Metro North Region Executive at Georgia Power Company where she manages external affairs for the Gwinnett, North DeKalb, North Fulton and Forsyth areas.

Prior to her current role, Kelley was leading the company’s Regulatory Affairs team. In this role, Kelley was responsible for developing and implementing regulatory strategies as well as building and maintaining constructive relationships with key external stakeholders impacting Georgia’s energy policy decisions. Key successful accomplishments include: 2022 Integrated Resource Plan, 2022 Rate Case, Fuel Case, Vogtle 3 & 4 Prudence Review, and 2023 Integrated Resource Plan Update.

Her career began at Georgia Power Company in 2003 in the sales organization. She was a member of the Key Account team, where she provided dedicated customer service and sales support to large business customers. Kelley has also worked within the Pricing & Rates organization, where she supported business customers with tariff analyses. In addition to her various marketing and sales positions, Kelley worked in the Customer Service Operations Financial Support organization, where she served as a financial comptroller, supporting statewide operations teams.

Over the years, Kelley has led various teams focused on providing technical analyses, customer service, sales and energy efficiency support to statewide residential and business customer markets. Prior to joining Regulatory Affairs, Kelley supported the Executive Vice President of External Affairs & Nuclear Development, where she was responsible for broad support of goal achievement among the organization’s cross-functional teams.

Born and raised in the Atlanta area, Kelley earned a B.B.A. in Finance from the University of Georgia in 2003. She received her M.B.A. from Mercer University in 2009. She participated in the inaugural Georgia Chamber High Potentials program in 2018 and recently served on the University of Georgia’s Board of Visitors. She is a member of Leadership Georgia’s Class of 2020-2021, a member of New Mexico State’s Center for Public Utilities and a participant in the Atlanta Women’s Foundation 2025 Inspire program.

Georgia Power

High reliability, low prices, and high customer satisfaction are cornerstones of the Georgia Powers’s commitment to its customers, but its dedication extends beyond these principles. Equally committed to giving back to the communities it serves, the company continues to uphold its vision of being “A Citizen Wherever We Serve,” a philosophy established more than 100 years ago by its first president, Preston Arkwright Sr.

As the largest subsidiary of Southern Company (NYSE: SO), one of the nation’s largest electricity generators, the company serves 2.5 million customers across all but four of Georgia’s 159 counties. Its foundation is built on value, reliability, customer service, and stewardship. Focused on delivering clean, safe, reliable, and affordable energy at rates below the national average, it maintains a diverse and innovative generation mix, incorporating nuclear, 21st-century coal, natural gas, and renewable sources such as solar, hydroelectric, and wind.

Dedicated to providing world-class service, the company consistently earns recognition from J.D. Power and Associates as an industry leader in customer satisfaction.

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Topics Discussed in this Episode

00:00 Introduction to the GNFCC 400 Insider
00:42 Meet Kelley Balkcom: Georgia Power’s Regional Executive
02:56 The Significance of Plant Vogtle
04:54 Challenges and Triumphs in Nuclear Energy
06:15 Understanding Clean Energy and Nuclear Power
07:53 Georgia’s Diverse Energy Portfolio
13:07 The Future of Energy in Georgia
22:13 Workforce Development and Opportunities
25:09 Touring Plant Vogtle
26:59 Conclusion and Contact Information

About GNFCC and The GNFCC 400 Insider

Kali Boatright, President and CEO of the Greater North Fulton Chamber of Commerce (GNFCC) — **Kali Boatright, President and CEO of the Greater North Fulton Chamber of Commerce**

The GNFCC 400 Insider is sponsored by the Greater North Fulton Chamber of Commerce (GNFCC), and the host of the show is Kali Boatright, President and CEO of GNFCC.

The Greater North Fulton Chamber of Commerce is a private, non-profit, member-driven organization comprised of over 1,400 business enterprises, civic organizations, educational institutions, and individuals. Their service area includes Alpharetta, Johns Creek, Milton, Mountain Park, Roswell, and Sandy Springs. GNFCC is the leading voice on economic development, business growth, and quality of life issues in North Fulton County.

As a five-star accredited chamber, GNFCC’s vision is to be the premier organization driving member and community success across the region, and they are dedicated to pursuing this vision based on the guiding principles of advocacy, inclusivity, and operational excellence.

GNFCC promotes the interests of their members by assuming a leadership role in making North Fulton an excellent place to work, live, play, and stay. They provide one voice for all local businesses to influence decision-makers, recommend legislation, and protect the valuable resources that make North Fulton a popular place to live.

For more information on GNFCC and its North Fulton County service area, follow this link or call (770) 993-8806. For more information on other GNFCC events, follow this link.

Phoenix Business Radio

Starting Small E135

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Starting Small E135

Todd Asmuth joined Tycoons to share some insights on his experiences in working with startups, especially a nuclear fusion startup. He also talks about making sure you start small, become good at the small things, then work your way up to bigger things.

Tune in to hear Todd’s thoughts on starting from the bottom and working your way up to bigger things and finding innovations to help people and keeping your foot on the gas. You can learn more about Todd at www.shinefusion.com

SHINE deploys its safe, cost-effective and environmentally friendly technology in a stepwise approach. Its systems are used to inspect industrial components in aerospace, defense, energy and other sectors. SHINE’s proprietary medical isotope production processes create molybdenum-99 and non-carrier-added lutetium-177.

These important medicines are used in tens of thousands of daily procedures to diagnose and treat heart disease, late-stage cancer, and other serious illnesses. In the future, SHINE plans to scale its fusion technology to help solve one of energy’s toughest hurdles by recycling nuclear waste. Through a purpose-driven and phased approach, SHINE aims to generate fusion power to deliver clean, abundant energy that could transform life on Earth. Learn more at www.shinefusion.com and @shinefusion.

Todd Asmuth joined SHINE as the company’s president in September 2015 and served in the additional role of chief financial officer from 2018 to 2021. In 2021, he was appointed chief strategy officer while retaining his responsibilities as SHINE’s president.

Prior to SHINE, he took multiple venture-capital-backed companies from concept to commercialization to profitability using lean startup, customer-focused product development techniques. He has also served on the boards of directors of multiple early-stage companies and non-profit organizations and currently is an operating partner for the private equity group May River Capital.

Early in his career, Asmuth spent four years in management consulting with Booz Allen & Hamilton on strategy engagements with Fortune 500 companies.

Todd earned an M.B.A. with honors from the Kellogg School of Management at Northwestern University and a B.S. in mechanical engineering from Yale University.

Connect with Todd on LinkedIn.

About the Show

Tycoons of Small Biz spotlights the true backbone of the American economy, the true tycoons of business in America… the owners, founders and CEO’s of small businesses. Join hosts, Austin L Peterson, Landon Mance and the featured tycoons LIVE every Tuesday at 1 pm, right here on Business RadioX and your favorite podcast platform.

About Your Hosts

Austin Peterson is a Comprehensive Financial Planner and co-founder of Backbone Planning Partners in Scottsdale, AZ. Austin is a registered rep and investment advisor representative with Lincoln Financial Advisors. Prior to joining Lincoln Financial Advisors, Austin worked in a variety of roles in the financial services industry.

He began his career in financial services in the year 2000 as a personal financial advisor with Independent Capital Management in Santa Ana, CA. Austin then joined Pacific Life Insurance Company as an internal wholesaler for their variable annuity and mutual fund products. After Pacific Life, Austin formed his own financial planning company in Southern California that he built and ran for 6 years and eventually sold when he moved his family to Salt Lake City to pursue his MBA.

After he completed his MBA, Austin joined Crump Life Insurance where he filled a couple of different sales roles and eventually a management role throughout the five years he was with Crump. Most recently before joining Lincoln Financial Advisors in February 2015, Austin spent 2 years as a life insurance field wholesaler with Symetra Life Insurance Company. Austin is a Certified Financial Planner Professional and Chartered Life Underwriter. In 2021, Austin became a Certified Business Exit Consultant® (CBEC®) to help entrepreneurs plan to exit their businesses.

Austin and his wife of 23 years, Robin, have two children, AJ (21) and Ella (18) and they reside in Gilbert, Arizona. He is a graduate of California State University, Fullerton with a Bachelor of Arts in French and of Brigham Young University’s Marriott School of Management with a Master of Business Administration with an emphasis in sales and entrepreneurship.

Connect with Austin on LinkedIn, Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.

Landon Mance is a Financial Planner and co-founder of Backbone Planning Partners out of Las Vegas, Nevada. He rebranded his practice in 2020 to focus on serving small business owners after operating as Mance Wealth Management since 2015 when Landon broke off from a major bank and started his own “shop.”

Landon comes from a family of successful entrepreneurs and has a passion and excitement for serving the business community. This passion is what brought about the growth of Backbone Planning Partners to help business owners and their families. At Backbone Planning, we believe small business owners’ personal and business goals are intertwined, so we work with our clients to design a financial plan to support all aspects of their lives.

In 2019, Landon obtained the Certified Exit Planning Advisor (CEPA) designation through the Exit Planning Institute. With this certification, Backbone Planning Partners assists business owners through an ownership transition while focusing on a positive outcome for their employees and meeting the business owner’s goals. Landon is also a member of the Business Intelligence Institute (BII) which is a collaborative group that shares tools, resources and personnel, and offers advanced level training and technical support to specifically serve business owners. In 2021, Landon became a Certified Business Exit Consultant® (CBEC®) to help entrepreneurs plan to exit their businesses by counseling owners about exit options, estimating the value of the business, preparing the business for exit and tax considerations.

Landon enjoys spending time with his beautiful wife, stepson, and new baby twins. He grew up in sunny San Diego and loves visiting his family, playing a round of golf with friends, and many other outdoor activities. Landon tries to make a difference in the lives of children in Las Vegas as a part of the leadership team for a local non-profit. He regularly visits the children that we work with to remind himself of why it’s so important to, “be the change that you wish to see in the world.”

Landon received his B.S. from California State University Long Beach in business marketing and gets the rest of his education through the school of hard knocks via his business owner clients.

Connect with Landon on LinkedIn.