(a) The commission shall issue a certificate upon a finding that there is or will be a need for the proposed capacity resource at the time that the proposed resource is proposed to be utilized to assure an economical and reliable supply of electric power and energy for the Georgia retail customers of a utility, that the certificate is required by the public convenience and necessity, and that the certificate complies with the provisions of this chapter and the rules of the commission.

(b) The utility's application for a certificate shall be accompanied by its current integrated resource plan, whether or not previously filed.

(c) The utility's application for a certificate shall contain a cost-benefit analysis covering the estimated useful life of all capacity resource options considered in developing its current integrated resource plan. The estimated cost of the capacity resource proposed to be certificated shall be presented in such reasonable detail as the commission may require.