Utility regulators have approved Georgia Power's spending on a new nuclear plant and set a schedule for reviewing the company's plan to meet the state's electricity needs in coming years.

The elected members of the Public Service Commission voted Tuesday to approve construction spending at the Plant Vogtle site for the second half of last year. The subsidiary of the Atlanta-based Southern Co. is trying to win permission to build two more nuclear reactors near Augusta.

PSC staffers and the utility had recommended that the commission approve that spending.

The commissioners also set a timeline for reviewing the utility's plan to meet the state's electricity needs through the start of 2015. A final decision is expected in March.

Tags: Georgia Power, Plant Vogtle, Southern Co.