TVA's long-term power planning sparks concerns

Staff Photo by Robin Rudd / The Tennessee Valley Authority's transmission towers at Chickamauga Dam are seen Feb. 16, 2023.

As it aims to meet growing energy demands across its seven-state region, TVA is seeking input on a long-term strategy that could involve adding more natural gas, solar and wind generation as it prepares to retire its coal fleet by 2035.

However, environmental advocates argue the Tennessee Valley Authority is leaning too heavily into outdated fossil fuel technology and don't want the utility to move forward with more gas plants.

"This is a critical juncture in TVA's history, and our public utility should commit to a long-term energy plan that lowers electric bills, reduces pollution and provides reliable power by building more clean and renewable resources instead of fossil fuels," Leah McCord, Tennessee projects coordinator for Appalachian Voices, said in a statement.

TVA is working on an updated energy strategy — dubbed an "integrated resource plan" — that will serve as a road map for the system as it anticipates changing regulations, technological breakthroughs and ways to accommodate new residents and industries settling in the region.

Open houses

TVA will hold 10 in-person open houses across its service area, including two in the Chattanooga area:

— 6 p.m. Nov. 20 at Rossville Middle School, 316 Bulldog Trail

— 6 p.m. Nov. 21 at the Avondale Community Center gym, 1305 Dodson Ave.

It includes dozens of options for energy portfolios that factor in cost, environmental impact, the state of the economy and more. The agency will gather feedback on the draft document through a series of open houses in October and November.

Clifton Lowry, the director of resource planning and strategy at TVA, said the process allows the utility to anticipate changes in its energy portfolio. The agency has power plants reaching the end of their useful life and some expiring contracts. TVA also intends to retire its four coal-fired power plants by 2035.

Lowry said the agency sees increasing opportunities for solar power to play a role in its system, although the utility would have to backstop that generation through improved energy efficiency, power storage, natural gas and more.

"There are obviously hours where we serve electric demand when the sun doesn't shine," Lowry said in a phone call.

Lowry said there's also the opportunities for new wind and nuclear power sources to show up on the grid by 2035, which could take on a more significant role in 2050.

In fiscal year 2023, TVA delivered 157 billion kilowatt-hours of electricity to customers from a power supply consisting of 42% nuclear, 31% natural gas, 14% coal-fired, 9% hydro and 4% wind and solar. TVA has announced plans to add 10,000 megawatts of solar capacity by 2035.

The draft also has critics. Stephen Smith, executive director of the Southern Alliance for Clean Energy, said TVA does not take its integrated resource planning as seriously as other large utilities.

Staff Photo by Robin Rudd/ The Tennessee Valley Authority logo adorns its offices in downtown Chattanooga on May 7, 2019.

Its draft plan is extraordinarily general, he said. The document, for example, anticipates the need for 9 to 26 gigawatts of firm power capacity between now and 2035, which Smith noted is a wide range. The agency also outlines 30 potential energy portfolios, but it doesn't identify a preferred option, Smith said.

"This is just so broad it's virtually meaningless," he said in a phone call.

Natural gas, which Smith calls "fossil gas," is better than coal in some ways, but there are still environmental concerns associated with fracking, a method used to extract gas from deep underground. The gas can also leak at drilling sites or during transport.

"It's an incremental improvement, but it's not a solution," Smith said. "It still has a carbon imprint and a methane imprint on the environment. As we've seen just over the last week, the science is undeniable that this fossil burning is turbocharging these hurricanes."

Amanda Garcia, a senior attorney for the Southern Environmental Law Center, said she's disappointed to see the majority of options proposed in TVA's draft plan include spending billions on dirty methane gas plants and pipelines.

This process is a chance for TVA to set a vision for the future, Garcia said — not double down on outdated fossil fuel technology that will worsen the effects of climate change and lead to higher power bills for families throughout the region.

"However, the draft plan confirms what we have been telling TVA for years. Renewable energy sources, like solar power and battery storage, can reliably provide power to TVA customers while saving money and lowering utility risk," Garcia said in a statement. "We hope that TVA will listen to communities, customers, conservation groups and its own board members, who have urged the federal utility to chart a cleaner future for the Tennessee Valley."

In a phone call, McCord said most of the scenarios TVA brought forward in its draft plan include significant investments in natural gas over the next decade. In order to compare the information side-by-side, McCord would like to see TVA release one scenario with renewable options that doesn't include any natural gas buildout.

Introducing more natural gas generation, McCord said, is a step sideways rather than a step forward.

"A lot of times, it's presented as this cleaner alternative to coal," McCord said. "We really don't necessarily agree with that framing."

It's also not financially responsible, she said. These types facilities can have a lifespan of 40-50 years, McCord said, which doesn't line up with carbon-reduction goals set by TVA and the federal government. TVA has said it aspires to have net zero carbon emissions by 2050.

As TVA adds more wind and solar power, Lowry said natural gas can help boost the reliability of the grid during peak hours when alternative energy sources may not be readily available.

"This is a little bit of an oversimplification analogy, but it's kind of like baking a cake, right?" Lowry said. "Every ingredient has its role, and while my favorite ingredient might be sugar, I can't put only sugar in the recipe to make a cake. There's other pieces of the equation that have to be there to deliver a final product that meets our commitments to our customers — that's low cost, that's reliable, that is resilient."

As it sunsets the Kingston Fossil Plant, TVA has said it will build an energy complex at the site with natural gas production, battery storage and up to 4 megawatts of solar generation. The utility also plans to construct a 1,450-megawatt natural gas facility at its retiring Cumberland Fossil Plant by 2026.

McCord said Appalachian Voices and other groups want TVA to become a shining example of a utility that takes renewable energy seriously.

"I think people see our message sometimes as critical of TVA," McCord said. "We're critical of some the decisions they make, but that comes from a place of our organizations really and truly believing in TVA as a public utility."

Contact David Floyd at dfloyd@timesfreepress.com or 423-757-6249.

Staff Photo by Robin Rudd / The Tennessee Valley Authority's Chickamauga Dam is seen behind transmission towers Feb. 16, 2023.