The Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA) Board of Directors approved the 2019 Final Integrated Resource Plan (IRP) at its quarterly business meeting in Knoxville, Tenn. After a Record of Decision is published in September, TVA will retire its 2015 IRP and begin using the 2019 IRP as its long-term plan to meet energy demands over the next two decades.

TVA took input from stakeholders and the public during the 2019 IRP drafting process to make sure it continues to provide reliable, affordable and clean electricity throughout the region. Following the release of the draft IRP on Feb. 15, 2019, TAEBC submitted comments in April. The final 2019 IRP and associated Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) were published in July. 

TVA updated its previous IRP to allow for a more dependable and flexible power-generation system that effectively leverages more renewable energy sources and distributed energy resources. According to the 2019 IRP’s Executive Summary, TVA found:

• There is a need for new capacity in all scenarios to replace expiring or retiring capacity.
• Solar expansion plays a substantial role in all futures.
• Gas, storage and demand response additions provide reliability and/or flexibility.
• No baseload resources (designed to operate around the clock) are added, highlighting the need for operational flexibility in the resource portfolio.
• Additional coal retirements occur in certain futures.
• Energy efficiency (EE) levels depend on market depth and cost-competitiveness.
• Wind could play a role if it becomes cost-competitive.
• In all cases, TVA will continue to provide for economic growth in the Tennessee Valley

For more information about the 2019 IRP, please visit TVA’s website.