Tennessee Valley Authority (“TVA”) together with Argo Infrastructure Partners, LP (“Argo”) and Brookfield Asset Management (“Brookfield”) (NYSE: BAM, TSX: BAM), with its listed affiliate Brookfield Renewable (NYSE: BEP, BEPC; TSX: BEP.UN, BEPC) today announced the signing of a landmark 10-year power purchase agreement (“PPA”) with power to be delivered by the Cheoah, Calderwood, Chilhowee and Santeetlah dams, together known as the Smoky Mountain Hydroelectric facilities (“Smoky”), which is jointly owned by Argo and Brookfield.
Smoky will begin delivering power through the PPA starting in 2025 and over the next decade, will supply more than 14 gigawatt hours of carbon-free energy to TVA customers, advancing TVA’s transition towards its 2050 net-zero goal.
Smoky currently owns and operates a 377-megawatt portfolio of four hydroelectric power facilities across east Tennessee and western North Carolina. This portfolio generates an annual average of 1.4 million megawatt-hours of carbon-free energy—equivalent to approximately 1.1 million tons of CO2 emissions avoided each year.
“TVA appreciates this partnership that enables more reliable, clean megawatts to be available when they’re needed,” said Chris Hansen, TVA vice president, Origination and Renewables Solutions. “We have a long history of effectively using hydroelectric power to provide affordable, reliable energy to our region, and this agreement builds on that success.”
Jason Zibarras, founder of Argo stated, “We are delighted to partner with Brookfield on this landmark PPA with TVA, set to deliver over 14 GWh of renewable energy and avoid 11 million tons of CO2 emissions for TVA’s customers over the next ten years.” Brice Soucy, Argo Senior Director and Smoky Board member commented, “This agreement strongly supports the region’s energy transition goals, where unprecedented growth in data centers, manufacturing, and other industries has increased the demand for carbon reduction and renewable energy options.”
“We are thrilled to partner with TVA and deliver clean power solutions at scale to accelerate the energy transition,” said Stephen Gallagher, CEO of Brookfield Renewable North America. “We are well positioned to meet increasing demand for power from digitalization and electrification with one of the largest renewable power platforms in the U.S., including our strategically important portfolio of hydro assets that can provide scale dispatchable clean power.”
