Tennessee Valley Authority Board of Directors Follow Expert Analysis, Retire Two Uneconomic, Dirty Coal Units

WASHINGTON, D.C.— The Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA) Board of Directors voted today to retire the remaining coal unit at the Paradise power plant in Muhlenberg County, Kentucky, and the Bull Run coal plant in Anderson County, Tennessee. The vote was a clear repudiation of President Trump’s inappropriate and unusual tactic to block the TVA staff’s recommendation to phase out the units over the next several years.

After exhaustive environmental and economic analyses, TVA’s staff determined these coal plants are no longer economic and are not needed in light of cleaner, less expensive energy sources. TVA also concluded that retiring these coal plants would save huge sums of money system-wide, lowering electricity rates for customers and helping the regional economy.

TVA Paradise Coal Plant Viability Analysis 

TVA Bull Run Coal Plant Viability Analysis

Despite the staff’s recommendation, however, Donald Trump and several of his political allies had been pressuring TVA’s Board of Directors to keep the coal units open, which would have conspicuously helped Robert Murray’s coal mining business. Murray Energy supplies coal for both coal units and Robert Murray is a well-known Trump supporter who has contributed more than one million dollars to Trump’s campaign and other pro-Trump groups.

Today’s decision is a victory for local environmental groups, for TVA’s electricity customers and ratepayers, and for the independence of the TVA Board of Directors.  

In response, Mary Anne Hitt, Senior Director of Sierra Club’s Beyond Coal campaign, released the following statement:

“TVA made the right decision to ignore the political posturing and close these dirty, expensive, and unnecessary coal units. The board ignored the political games, followed their statutory mission, and were guided by the facts laid out by their own experts. Now they’re paving the way for cleaner, more affordable energy in Tennessee and Kentucky.

“Once again, Trump’s cynical efforts to bail out millionaire coal executives have been overcome by the reality that coal plants can no longer compete with cleaner, cheaper energy sources. It’s time to invest in the transition to clean energy and focus on helping fossil fuel workers secure the new economic opportunities they deserve.”

Joey Shadowen, chair of the Cumberland Chapter of the Sierra Club in Kentucky, said:

“Phasing out coal-burning at the Paradise power plant is the right decision because the remaining coal unit is unneeded, inefficient, inflexible, needs expensive repairs, and rarely runs,” said Joey Shadowen, chair of the Cumberland Chapter of the Sierra Club in Kentucky. “Now that the TVA board has affirmed that with their vote, TVA can create a transition fund and job-training assistance to protect and support communities affected by the plant closures.”

Bonnie Swinford, organizing representative for the Beyond Coal campaign in Tennessee, added:

“We’re glad TVA knows it’s time to retire these old, inefficient coal plants, because keeping them running would only burden families, schools and business with higher bills.

“And since TVA is providing a good window of time before these plants would go off-line, it can start working now with local public officials, workers, and the public to prepare for responsible environmental closure of the sites, as well as for fair and equitable economic transition plans for the Claxton community in Tennessee and communities in Muhlenberg County in western Kentucky.”