The Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA), an agency of the U.S. government, is the nations largest public power provider and one of the country’s largest electric utilities. TVA supplies electricity for customers in most of Tennessee and parts of Alabama, Mississippi, Kentucky, Georgia, North Carolina, and Virginia – an area of about 80,000 square miles with a population of more than nine million. TVA provides electricity to local public power companies and directly served customers. Its generating assets include three nuclear plants, 11 coal-fired power plants, 29 hydroelectric dams, 12 natural gas fired power facilities, a pumped-storage hydroelectric facility, and several renewable energy sites. Together, they produce about 34,000 megawatts of electricity or generating capacity, delivered over 16,000 miles of high-voltage power lines. TVA is responsible for balancing the multiple benefits of the Tennessee River and its tributaries through its 49 Dams with respect to flood damage reduction, navigation, hydroelectric power production, recreation, water quality and water supply. The corporation oversees 11,000 miles of shoreline, 600,000 acres of water, and 293,000 acres of land. TVA also fosters economic development throughout its service area in partnership with its customers and other public and private entities to bring quality jobs to the region and to encourage sustainable development.
