The TVA Board of Directors voted unanimously on Thursday to give TVA CEO Bill Johnson the authority to accelerate the retirement of Unit 7 at the Widows Creek Fossil Plant located near Stevenson, Ala.
The 470 MW coal fired unit, originally slated for retirement in 2019, will be now be retired at the discretion of the CEO but must occur no later than October 2015. Unit 7 is the final unit at the facility as Units 1-6 were retired between May 2012 and July 2013 following an EPA consent decree, and Unit 8 was idled in October 2014.
In response to Thursday’s announcement, Dr. Stephen A. Smith, executive director of the Southern Alliance for Clean Energy, made this statement:
“SACE applauds and supports the TVA board for making the appropriate decision to accelerate the retirement of Unit 7 at the Widows Creek Fossil Plant. We believe it is always good news when a utility retires an inefficient coal plant and replaces it with cleaner generation.
"We believe this is the best decision for ratepayers throughout the Tennessee Valley, and it will also provide cleaner air and less carbon emissions sooner than the original retirement schedule. We encourage the company to consider ways to ease the economic transition for northern Alabama communities, for example by increasing investment in solar energy in the area."