TVA's actions should call into question why other power suppliers like the Northwest's Portland General Electric keep insisting they can't get their own dirty and outdated coal plants offline on a similar timeframe. In explaining the government corporation's move to cut out a chunk of its coal power, TVA President Tom Kilgore cited a desire for TVA to lead the way on sources of energy that come with far fewer carbon emissions than coal. It seems TVA is coming to recognize an inevitability which utilities across the country should take note of: coal power, associated with high levels of carbon emissions and other pollutants, is on its way to becoming a thing of the past.
November 15, 2010
TVA Closing Coal Plants
As part of its new ten-year plan, the Tennessee Valley Authority plans to retire at least 1,000 megawatts of coal energy (and emissions that come with burning coal) by the year 2015. This amounts to about 7% of TVA's total coal fired capacity, and represents a good first step for this federally owned energy supplier that controls a sizable fraction of the eastern US coal fleet.
TVA's actions should call into question why other power suppliers like the Northwest's Portland General Electric keep insisting they can't get their own dirty and outdated coal plants offline on a similar timeframe. In explaining the government corporation's move to cut out a chunk of its coal power, TVA President Tom Kilgore cited a desire for TVA to lead the way on sources of energy that come with far fewer carbon emissions than coal. It seems TVA is coming to recognize an inevitability which utilities across the country should take note of: coal power, associated with high levels of carbon emissions and other pollutants, is on its way to becoming a thing of the past.
TVA's actions should call into question why other power suppliers like the Northwest's Portland General Electric keep insisting they can't get their own dirty and outdated coal plants offline on a similar timeframe. In explaining the government corporation's move to cut out a chunk of its coal power, TVA President Tom Kilgore cited a desire for TVA to lead the way on sources of energy that come with far fewer carbon emissions than coal. It seems TVA is coming to recognize an inevitability which utilities across the country should take note of: coal power, associated with high levels of carbon emissions and other pollutants, is on its way to becoming a thing of the past.
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