The Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA) said it would add natural gas-fired generation fueled by a potential pipeline expansion proposed by Enbridge Inc.’s East Tennessee Natural Gas LLC (ETNG) as it retires a large segment of coal generation.
TVA, which has floated the proposal of retiring the Kingston Fossil Plant (KIF) since its 2019 Integrated Resource Plan, said by 2027 it would be shuttering all nine units at the coal-fired facility in eastern Tennessee.
In addition to solar and battery storage additions, about 1,500 MW of natural gas-fired capacity from one combined-cycle plant and 16 dual-fuel aeroderivative combustion turbines (aero CT) would replace the retired generation. Aero CTs are able to ramp up faster than conventional simple-cycle CTs as they draw air into the units. The air is compressed, mixed with fuel and ignited to produce power more efficiently.
The public power agency said adding natural gas-fired generation “will achieve the purpose and need to have firm, dispatchable replacement generation to meet capacity system demands, particularly peak load events, by the end of 2027 when KIF is retired.”
Gas-fired power also would “facilitate the integration of additional solar and battery storage resources elsewhere on TVA’s system” as it is aiming to have 10,000 MW of solar generation online by 2035.
ETNG’s 122-mile, 30-inch diameter Ridgeline Expansion Project, which is pending a final decision from the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, would supply fuel to the natural gas plants. ETNG is estimating the natural gas pipeline could be completed by late 2026.
KIF’s retirement would mark TVA shuttering its second-largest coal-fired facility. The public power agency also is retiring its largest coal plant, the Cumberland Fossil Plant, and replacing it with a 1,450 MW natural gas combined-cycle plant.
TVA provides utility services to more than 10 million people in Tennessee and in six surrounding states.
Gas Powering Growth
In similar news, San Antonio, TX-based CPS Energy is snagging three natural gas-fired generation plants in Texas from Talen Energy Corp. in a $785 million deal as it retires its coal portfolio and powers one of the largest cities in the country.
Under the agreement signed in March, CPS would buy Talen’s 897 MW Barney Davis and 635 MW Nueces Bay natural gas-fired power plants in Corpus Christi, as well as its 178 MW gas-fueled generation facility in Laredo.
Following the transaction, slated to close this summer, the municipally owned utility (MOU) may elect to “improve the performance of these plants,” which was viewed as more cost-beneficial “compared to building new assets,” CEO Rudy Garza said.
CPS spokesperson Dana Sotoodeh told NGI, “We will seek opportunities to use funding options that are available for the buildout of our generation fleet,” including “federal and state opportunities.”
CPS serves nearly one million electric and 381,000 natural gas customers in Bexar County and surrounding areas. Like many utilities throughout the country, CPS also is experiencing a surge in energy demand across its service territory.
San Antonio recently ranked ninth in the top U.S. metropolitan areas by numeric population growth, according to the U.S. Census Bureau. The city added more than 48,000 residents from July 2022-2023. CPS in its Vision 2027 generation plan said it may need to add more than 115 MW/year through 2030 to account for the population growth.
CPS also is aiming to retire all of its coal-fired generation, about 2,200 MW, by 2030. To fill energy supply gaps, the MOU would add 2,995 MW of natural gas-fired and about 2,730 MW of renewable resources.
The addition of the three gas-fired plants would support CPS’s transition plan by providing “flexibility to add more renewable energy and storage with this benefit of firming capacity (power that is available as needed) in place,” the MOU said.
