TVA adds two solar generating sites

Dec 6 - McClatchy-Tribune Regional News - The Knoxville News-Sentinel, Tenn.


TVA has added two new solar generating sites -- one in Huntsville, Ala., and one in Dyer, Tenn., as part of its Green Power Switch program.

Huntsville and TVA officials held a dedication event Monday for a 23-kilowatt site at Huntsville Botanical Garden capable of generating 30,000 kilowatt-hours a year. A dedication is planned Thursday in Dyer for a 19.7-kilowatt site at Gibson High School capable of providing about 24,000 kilowatt-hours annually.

They bring TVA's Green Power Switch program to 16 solar-generation sites throughout its service area, with a total capacity of 472 kilowatts.

The average household served by TVA uses about 14,000 kilowatt-hours of electricity a year.

Founded in 2000, Green Power Switch is a program that lets residents and businesses purchase blocks of green power from their local power companies. Since then, the program has provided more than 600,000 megawatts of power. It has nearly 11,000 participants served by 116 power companies.

"In the 10 years since TVA because the first utility in the Southeast to offer consumers clean electricity through Green Power Switch, we've seen a renewable energy renaissance take root in the Tennessee Valley," John Trawick, TVA senior vice president for Commercial Operations and Pricing, said in a statement.

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