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Jeff Lyash Op-Ed: TVA Dedicated to Supplying Memphis with Reliable and Sufficient Energy in any Condition
This text originally appeared in the Memphis Commercial Appeal.
TVA is proud to partner with MLGW to deliver reliable, low-cost energy to the people of Memphis.
Reliable electricity — keeping the lights on; staying warm in the winter and cool in the summer — is a basic need that most of us take for granted. It’s not something most people worry about until it isn’t there.
But last week was different. As a major winter storm made its way across the South, millions of people in Texas, Oklahoma, Mississippi and across the river in Arkansas were without electricity. Many for several days. Our thoughts are with the families impacted by last week’s storm.
TVA is privileged to partner with MLGW to generate and deliver reliable electricity to the people of Memphis and Shelby County every day. We are accountable to prepare and plan for events like last week, which are now happening more frequently.
There have been questions about why the lights stayed on in Memphis and Shelby County while others nearby suffered outages and rolling blackouts. I’ve been asked what I learned from this extreme weather event. Let me share a couple of thoughts with you, as we evaluate TVA’s performance.
Keeping Memphians with power is TVA's top priority
First, thank you to the women and men of TVA and MLGW, who are focused each and every day on serving Memphis. They worked around the clock, braving the elements. Their commitment and combined response to the coldest weather Memphis had seen in years helped make the difference.
Second, I was reminded of one of the guiding principles of public power: High reliability is every bit as important as low cost. When weather is at its worst, families expect us to deliver power reliably, without sacrificing cost.
TVA is one of the nation’s largest power producers, with diverse and adaptable generation that includes nuclear, gas, hydro, coal and renewable energy. That power is delivered to you through one of the most reliable transmission systems in the country.
TVA has delivered power to MLGW with 100% reliability for over 20 years. But we’re not satisfied. In fact, we are investing $72 million in the transmission network in Memphis to ensure future reliability and prepare for growth and jobs.
Memphis is home to some of largest, most recognizable companies in the nation. These companies expect and demand two things – reliable service and competitive prices.
We know how important it is to have reliable energy
With every season and every extreme event, we capture and apply lessons learned. One example is a recent trend we’ve seen in weather volatility. To account for this, we’ve raised our energy reserve margin from 20 to 26 percent to ensure that our number one priority – keeping your lights on – is always our most important objective.
We also continuously invest in winterizing our assets across the TVA system. We have done this while maintaining some of the lowest costs in the nation.
The people who want MLGW to leave TVA argue the market risk is minimal and that reliability is the same. Of course, those who are pushing this have never worked in the utility business or experienced the volatility of these large energy markets during real-world conditions.
In extreme weather, you need more electricity to stay comfortable. That is when supply gets scarce and wholesale market prices skyrocket. That’s the harsh economics of market pricing. We all have read the stories of electric bills rising to thousands of dollars in surrounding regions during this crisis.
TVA’s system performed as designed at the cost we promised you — which is a lower effective rate than 10 years ago. Today, MLGW’s energy costs are as low, or lower, than any in the MISO peer group.
Working together, TVA and MLGW delivered reliability and low, predictable pricing. When it’s your family and your electric bill — balancing both is equally important to you.
If it gets bitterly cold or unbearably hot in Memphis, we are here to serve you. We will not gamble with or leverage your safety and comfort in an effort to make a profit for ourselves.
That is the profound benefit and value of public power.
We are proud to partner with MLGW, and we are privileged to serve you…the people of Memphis.
Jeff Lyash is President and CEO of the Tennessee Valley Authority.