TVA Asks for Public Input on New Grid Resiliency Effort

KNOXVILLE, Tenn.  ­— The Tennessee Valley Authority is inviting the public to join the environmental review process for a proposed grid resiliency program that would help qualified businesses build backup generation that TVA could also use to support the power grid.   

Pursuant to the National Environmental Policy Act, TVA is conducting a Programmatic Environmental Review (PEA) of the Resilience 360° Program. TVA’s PEA evaluates the impact of establishing the Resilience 360° Program in which TVA would partner with multiple vendors to provide backup generation in the form of on-site modular natural gas units or battery energy storage systems (BESS) to improve commercial resiliency for qualified businesses. Under the proposal, vendors of natural gas units or BESS would install the units at host locations and would own, operate, and maintain the units. TVA would enter into Power Purchase Agreements with vendors to have control or dispatch rights to the units when not in use by the qualified businesses. Each facility would generate anywhere from 500 kilowatts up to 25 megawatts of power. This PEA establishes general siting and environmental criteria to ensure that installations do not cause greater impacts than those addressed in this PEA.

TVA has prepared an Environmental Screening Checklist to gather information about each proposed site during the approval process. By completing a similar checklist for each location/host, TVA specialists can verify whether the siting decision is adequately covered by the PEA or if additional environmental review under NEPA is required.

TVA will accept comments through April 17, 2025, on the scope of the Draft PEA to evaluate the project alternatives, preferred alternative, and analyze the potential impacts on the environment associated with establishment of the Resilience 360° Program and associated construction, operation, and decommissioning of these units. Comments received, including names and addresses, will become part of the administrative record and will be available for public inspection.  

Comments may be submitted online at tva.com/nepa or by email to [email protected]. Written comments may also be sent to Carol Freeman, Tennessee Valley Authority, 400 W. Summit Hill Drive, Knoxville, TN 37902.

TVA will not make a decision without public input and the completion of the environmental review process.

This project is part of TVA’s strategy to unleash American energy to power the region’s growth.  Over the past five years, the region’s GDP has grown 2.9%, outpacing the national average of 2.4%. In addition, the region’s population has grown faster than the U.S. overall, especially in the working-age population and those under 20 years old.

TVA's current planning assumption includes building about 5,500 megawatts of new firm, dispatchable generation by 2029. Construction is underway at Shawnee, Kentucky, and the three locations in Tennessee: Kingston Energy Complex, Cumberland, and Johnsonville. TVA has completed 1,400 megawatts of new gas units at Paradise in Kentucky and Colbert in Alabama.  Construction will begin soon at New Caledonia in Mississippi, and other new generation projects are under consideration in Tennessee.

About TVA

The Tennessee Valley Authority is the nation’s largest public power supplier, delivering energy to more than 10 million people across seven southeastern states. TVA has one of the most diverse energy systems – including nuclear, hydro, solar, gas, and advanced technologies. To prepare for the future, TVA is making significant investments in its power system toward new generation and transmission.

TVA is a corporate agency of the United States, receiving no taxpayer funding, deriving virtually all of its revenues from sales of electricity. TVA maintains some of the lowest energy costs and highest reliability in the nation. TVA’s retail rates are lower than 80 percent of the rest of the nation, while its industrial rates are lower than 95 percent of the top utilities. In addition, TVA provides flood control, navigation, and land management for the Tennessee River system, and assists local power companies and state and local governments with economic development and job creation.