The Tennessee Valley Authority welcomed visitors from across the state to celebrate the dedication of new state-of-the-art natural gas units at the Paradise Combustion Turbine Plant in Muhlenberg County Wednesday.
The three new units started operations in December and the additional 750 megawatts of generating capacity is set to provide enough electricity to power more than 400,000 homes. The units can reach full power within 11 minutes and will greatly help with demand peaks.
Rocky Adkins with the Governor’s Office spoke at the event, saying these units and the TVA will help meet the growing demand for power in this region, from Novelis in Todd County to Ascend Elements in Christian County and much more.
TVA President and CEO Jeff Lyash says the Paradise Plant has a storied history in this area and they’re glad to keep it going in a modern world.
He says the new units will allow them to meet demand, keep energy bills low and be environmentally conscious all at the same time.
The expansion of Paradise is part of TVA’s plan to build more than 3,800 megawatts of new generation by 2028 that includes solar, energy storage, combustion turbines and combined-cycle natural gas. TVA is investing $15 billion over the next three years to build additional generation and upgrade the existing system to ensure the region continues to benefit from affordable, reliable power.