Tennessee electric co-ops respond to TVA decarbonization plans

NASHVILLE – At a board meeting held Wednesday in Young Harris, Ga., Jeff Lyash, CEO of the Tennessee Valley Authority, discussed decarbonization plans one year after releasing the agency’s Strategic Intent and Guiding Principles framework.

David Callis, executive vice president and general manager of the Tennessee Electric Cooperative Association, made the following statement:

“Affordable energy and a reliable and resilient power grid are critical to the families and businesses served by consumer-owned electric co-ops. Co-ops support robust decarbonization efforts, but we also recognize that the economic success of rural and suburban Tennessee depends on affordable and reliable energy. Environmental and economic needs must be carefully balanced as we move toward a carbon-free future. We support TVA’s efforts to reduce carbon emissions while protecting Tennessee’s electric rate payers and economic growth.”

Tennessee’s electric co-ops are leaders in balancing environmental and economic concerns. Tennessee’s electric co-ops’ residential electric rates at are 17 percent below the national average. At the same time, more than 55 percent of the energy distributed by Tennessee’s electric co-ops comes from carbon free sources, and statewide electric co-ops have built more than 2.5 megawatts of solar generation.