Press Mention EE May 6, 2021
Topical Mention
TVA sets 2050 net-zero carbon goal, doubles down on nuclear
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The Tennessee Valley Authority announced a 2050 net-zero carbon goal and plans to cut CO2 emissions by 80% below 2005 levels by 2035. TVA CEO Jeff Lyash emphasized that achieving these targets requires next-generation technologies like advanced nuclear power and partnered with Kairos Power on a low-power demonstration reactor project in Oak Ridge, Tennessee.
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TVA sets 2050 net-zero carbon goal, doubles down on nuclear
By:
Kristi E. Swartz
| 05/07/2021 07:14 AM EDT
ENERGYWIRE | The Tennessee Valley Authority announced a 2050 net-zero carbon goal yesterday, with its CEO emphasizing it cannot get there without next-generation technologies like advanced nuclear power.
TVA Chief Executive Jeff Lyash told E&E News the federal agency's carbon-cutting goals are not out of alignment with those of the Biden administration, which aims to eliminate power-sector CO2 emissions by 2035. Rather, TVA's targets — including plans to cut CO2 emissions by 80% below 2005 levels by 2035 — define what else is needed to reach President Biden's goal, he said.
"Talking about a thing doesn't make it happen; you have to know how to execute it," Lyash said in an interview after a TVA board meeting yesterday.
The nation's largest public power utility also revealed yesterday it is partnering with Kairos Power, a nuclear technology and engineering company, on a low-power demonstration reactor.
Alameda, Calif.-based Kairos is developing a fluoride salt-cooled high-temperature reactor. The demonstration project at the East Tennessee Technology Park in Oak Ridge, Tenn., will generate roughly 15 megawatts of electricity, according to TVA. At scale, the reactor would be roughly 150 MW, Lyash said.