Net electricity generation by energy source in 2023 [1]
The U.S. state of Tennessee receives its power from a variety of sources. The Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA) is the primary utility in Tennessee which generates electricity and sells it to hundreds of local utilities and industrial customers. [2] Like most of the US, the sources used to generate power in Tennessee have changed substantially in the last decade. Coal's share of power has declined from nearly 60% in 2008 to about 25% in 2018, while natural gas has increased significantly. [3] Tennessee is home to the two newest nuclear reactors in the US at Watts Bar Nuclear Plant, unit 2 being the first to begin operation in the 21st century. [3] After Watts Bar Unit 2 began operation in late 2016, nuclear power passed coal as the top source of electricity. [4] In November 2018 natural gas produced more power than coal for the first time in Tennessee. [5] Tennessee is home to the third largest pumped-storage hydroelectric facility in the US, and has the third highest net generation of hydroelectric power of states east of the Mississippi River, and eighth highest nationwide. [3] In 2018, about 57% of the power consumed in Tennessee was generated with emissions free sources. [5] Tennessee is a net consumer of electricity, consuming more power than it generates and receiving power from TVA facilities in neighboring states. [4]
| Name | Location | Capacity (MW) | Operator | Year opened |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| City of Covington Waste-To-Energy Gasification Plant | Nashville, Tennessee | 0.125 | City of Nashville | 2013 |
| Name | Location | Capacity (MW) | Operator | Year opened | Scheduled retirement |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cumberland Fossil Plant [6] | Cumberland City, Tennessee | 2,600 | Tennessee Valley Authority | 1973 | 2028 [7] |
| Gallatin Fossil Plant [8] | Sumner County, Tennessee | 1,255 | Tennessee Valley Authority | 1956 | 2035 [9] |
| Kingston Fossil Plant [10] | Kingston, Tennessee | 1,700 | Tennessee Valley Authority | 1954 | 2035 [9] |
The Tennessee Valley Authority operates nine natural gas power stations in Tennessee. [11] Six of these use simple combustion turbines. Three newer facilities use more efficient combined cycle generators.
| Name | Location | Type | Capacity (MW) | Operator | Year opened |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Allen Combined Cycle Plant | Memphis, Tennessee | Gas, biogas | 1,100 | Tennessee Valley Authority | 2018 |
| Allen Combustion Turbine Plant | Memphis, Tennessee | Gas, biogas | 456 | Tennessee Valley Authority | 1971 |
| Brownsville Combustion Turbine Plant | Brownsville, Tennessee | Gas | 468 | Tennessee Valley Authority | 1999 |
| Gallatin Combustion Turbine Plant | Gallatin, Tennessee | Gas | 600 | Tennessee Valley Authority | 1975 |
| Gleason Combustion Turbine Plant | Weakley County, Tennessee | Gas | 465 | Tennessee Valley Authority | 2000 |
| Lagoon Creek Combined Cycle Plant | Brownsville, Tennessee | Gas | 525 | Tennessee Valley Authority | 2010 |
| Lagoon Creek Combustion Turbine Plant | Brownsville, Tennessee | Gas | 941 | Tennessee Valley Authority | 2001 |
| John Sevier Combined Cycle Plant | Rogersville, Tennessee | Gas | 871 | Tennessee Valley Authority | 2012 |
| Johnsonville Combustion Turbine Plant | New Johnsonville, Tennessee | Gas | 1,133 | Tennessee Valley Authority | 1975, 2000 |
| Name | Location | Capacity (MW) | Operator | Year opened |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Buffalo Mountain Wind Farm | Oak Ridge, Tennessee | 29 | Tennessee Valley Authority | 2000 |
| Name | Location | Capacity (MW) | Operator | Year opened |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Allen Solar Plant | Memphis, Tennessee | 1 | Tennessee Valley Authority | 2017 |
| Chattanooga Metropolitan Airport Solar Farm | Chattanooga Metropolitan Airport, Chattanooga, Tennessee | 2.1 | Chattanooga Metropolitan Airport Authority | 2011 |
| Mulberry Solar Farm | McNairy County, Tennessee | 20 | Strata Solar | 2014 |
| Selmer Solar Farm | Selmer, Tennessee | 20 | Strata Solar | 2014 |
| Volkswagen Solar Farm | Volkswagen Chattanooga Assembly Plant, Chattanooga, Tennessee | 9.5 | Volkswagen Chattanooga Assembly Plant | 2013 |
| West Tennessee Solar Farm | Stanton, Tennessee | 5 | University of Tennessee | 2012 |
The Tennessee Valley Authority operates two nuclear plants in Tennessee. In addition much of the power generated at TVA's Browns Ferry Nuclear Plant in Limestone County, Alabama is distributed to Tennessee.
| Name | Location | Capacity (MW) | Operator | Year opened |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sequoyah Nuclear Plant | Soddy-Daisy, Tennessee | 2,300 | Tennessee Valley Authority | 1981 |
| Watts Bar Nuclear Plant | Spring City, Tennessee | 2,300 | Tennessee Valley Authority | 1996 and 2015 |
| Name | Location | Capacity (MW) | Operator | Year opened | Year retired |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Eastman Chemical Power Plant | Kingsport, Tennessee | 131 | Eastman Chemical Co-TN Ops | 1936 | 1994 |
| Allen Fossil Plant | Memphis, Tennessee | 990 | Tennessee Valley Authority | 1959 | 2018 |
| Watts Bar Steam Plant | Rhea County, Tennessee | 267 | Tennessee Valley Authority | 1942 | 1982 |
| John Sevier Fossil Plant | Hawkins County, Tennessee | 880 | Tennessee Valley Authority | 1957 | 2012 |
| Johnsonville Fossil Plant | New Johnsonville, Tennessee | 1500 | Tennessee Valley Authority | 1951 | 2017 |
| Bull Run Fossil Plant [13] | Claxton, Tennessee | 950 | Tennessee Valley Authority | 1967 | 2023 [14] |
| Station | Location | Type | Capacity (MW) | Status | Year opened | Year closed |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hales Bar Dam | Haletown, Tennessee | Hydroelectric | 71 | Decommissioned | 1913 | 1952 |
| Station | Location | Type | Units | Year construction began | Year cancelled |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hartsville Nuclear Plant | Hartsville, Tennessee | Nuclear | 4 | 1975 | 1984 |
| Phipps Bend Nuclear Plant | Surgoinsville, Tennessee | Nuclear | 2 | 1977 | 1981 |
The Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA) is a federally owned electric utility corporation in the United States. TVA's service area covers all of Tennessee, portions of Alabama, Mississippi, and Kentucky, and small areas of Georgia, North Carolina, and Virginia. While owned by the federal government, TVA receives no taxpayer funding and operates similarly to a private for-profit company. It is headquartered in Knoxville, Tennessee, and is the sixth-largest power supplier and largest public utility in the country.
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The Sequoyah Nuclear Plant is a nuclear power plant located on 525 acres (212 ha) located 7 miles (11 km) east of Soddy-Daisy, Tennessee, and 20 miles (32 km) north of Chattanooga, abutting Chickamauga Lake on the Tennessee River. The facility is owned and operated by the Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA).
Cumberland Fossil Plant is a pulverized coal-fired power station located west of Cumberland City, Tennessee, US, on the south bank of Lake Barkley on the Cumberland River. Owned and operated by Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA), it has a gross capacity of 2,470 MW, and is the most powerful power station in Tennessee.
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The Gallatin Fossil Plant is a coal and natural gas-fired power plant near Gallatin, Tennessee operated by the Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA). The plant was originally entirely a coal-fired plant, constructed in the 1950s, and natural gas units were added later.
