[Federal Register Volume 88, Number 196 (Thursday, October 12, 2023)]
[Notices]
[Pages 70693-70694]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2023-22517]


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TENNESSEE VALLEY AUTHORITY


Allen Aeroderivative Generation Project

AGENCY: Tennessee Valley Authority.

ACTION: Notice of Intent.

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SUMMARY: The Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA) intends to prepare an 
environmental assessment (EA) or environmental impact statement (EIS) 
to address the potential environmental impacts associated with the 
proposed installation and operation of six new aeroderivative 
combustion turbine (CT) units at the Allen Combustion Turbine (ACT) 
site, located in Shelby County, Tennessee, southwest of the City of 
Memphis. The new aeroderivative units would generate approximately 200 
Megawatts (MW) of power to help meet the growing system demand. The 
units would provide flexible and dispatchable transmission grid support 
and facilitate the integration of renewable generation onto the TVA 
bulk transmission system, consistent with TVA's 2019 Integrated 
Resource Plan (IRP). TVA is inviting public comment concerning the 
scope of the review, alternatives being considered, and environmental 
issues that should be addressed.

DATES: The public scoping period begins with the publication of this 
Notice of Intent in the Federal Register. To ensure consideration, 
comments must be postmarked, submitted online, or emailed no later than 
November 13, 2023. To facilitate the scoping process, TVA will hold an 
in-person public open house meeting; see https://www.tva.gov/NEPA for 
more information on the meeting.

ADDRESSES: Written comments should be submitted by email to 
[email protected] or online at https://www.tva.gov/NEPA. Comments may also 
be mailed to Matthew Higdon, NEPA Specialist, 400 West Summit Hill 
Drive #WT11B, Knoxville, Tennessee 37902.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Matthew Higdon by email to 
[email protected], by phone at (865) 632-8051, or by mail at the address 
above.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: This notice is provided in accordance with 
the Council on Environmental Quality's Regulations (40 CFR parts 1500 
to 1508) and TVA's procedures for implementing the National 
Environmental Policy Act (NEPA). TVA is an agency and instrumentality 
of the United States, established by an act of Congress in 1933, to 
foster the social and economic welfare of the people of the Tennessee 
Valley region and to promote the proper use and conservation of the 
region's natural resources. One component of this mission is the 
generation, transmission, and sale of reliable and affordable electric 
energy.

Preliminary Proposed Action and Alternatives

    TVA anticipates that the scope of the EA or EIS will evaluate an 
Action Alternative and a No Action Alternative. Under the Action 
Alternative, TVA would install and operate six new aeroderivative 
combustion turbine units generating approximately 200 MW of power at 
ACT. TVA would also continue to operate two existing CT units which 
would provide an additional 120 MW of power. The new units would 
support fast-start dispatching and have synchronous condensing 
capabilities to improve grid stability. Four of the units would have 
black-start capabilities. Under the proposal, TVA would implement the 
best available control technologies to mitigate air emissions. 
Construction would occur over a one-year timeframe (approximately) 
beginning in 2025 or 2026, with construction activities taking place 
within previously disturbed areas at ACT and adjacent properties. 
Commercial operations would begin in 2025 or 2026.
    Under the No Action Alternative, TVA would not install new 
aeroderivative CT units at the ACT, and TVA would retire all existing 
units. The No Action alternative provides a baseline for comparing 
against the Action Alternative.

Background

    In the 2019 IRP, TVA evaluated six scenarios (plausible futures) 
and five strategies (potential TVA responses to those plausible 
futures) and identified a range of potential resource additions and 
retirements throughout the TVA power service area, which encompasses 
approximately 80,000 square miles. The target supply mix adopted by the 
TVA Board through the 2019 IRP included the addition of up to 5,200 MW 
of simple cycle capacity by 2028 to facilitate the integration of solar 
onto the TVA bulk power system.
    Investments in adding aeroderivative CTs to the peaking fleet 
aligns with the direction in the IRP, which recommended enhancing 
system flexibility to integrate renewables and distributed resources, 
with substantial solar additions over the next two decades. As the 
amount of solar generation on the TVA generation portfolio continues to 
increase, flexibility of the remainder of the fleet becomes even more 
important. For instance, cloud patterns that temporarily block the sun 
and reduce solar generation require other generating units to respond 
to continue to reliably supply power to customers. Aeroderivative CTs 
are inherently well-suited to provide flexibility, enabling the 
remainder of the system to better integrate renewables.
    Since the completion of the IRP, TVA has seen a strong increase in 
electric demand. Population has increased in the TVA service region by 
1.5 percent since 2019. TVA expects continued strong growth in annual 
electric demand through the middle of this decade. Forecasted electric 
demand is expected to grow more than one percent per year on average 
between 2023-2026. Current system modeling shows that with increased 
residential migration and commercial development, TVA must add capacity 
to the system to maintain adequate operating reserves.
    In 2019, TVA also completed a CT Modernization Study to evaluate 
the condition of its existing CT units and form recommendations for 
investments to ensure a reliable and flexible peaking fleet into the 
future. The results of the study identified the ACT units as the ``most 
challenged'' based on their age and material condition and recommended 
that they be replaced. The CT Modernization Study also recommended 
adding new aeroderivative CTs to enhance system flexibility, integrate 
increasing renewable capacity, and provide dispatchable capacity. The 
proposed action would also be consistent with the findings and 
recommendations of this study.
    In June 2021, TVA issued an environmental assessment (EA) 
addressing the retirement of the CT units at Allen. At that time, TVA 
issued the Paradise and Colbert Combustion Turbine EA and an associated 
finding of no significant impact, in which TVA

[[Page 70694]]

addressed the retirement of all 20 CT units at its Allen and 
Johnsonville plants and the replacement of the capacity lost with new 
CT units at its Paradise and Colbert plants. Under the current 
proposal, TVA is considering the continual operation of existing Units 
19 and 20 at ACT, previously identified for retirement.
    In December 2022, during Winter Storm Elliott, 16 of the units at 
ACT failed to start, impacting the TVA system position by 240 MWs. 
Since this event, these 16 units at Allen have ceased operations. Only 
two units at ACT (Units 19 and 20) are operable.

Project Purpose and Need

    The purpose of the proposed action is to increase the flexibility 
and reliability of TVA power system by improving TVA's transmission 
system stability in western Tennessee and providing new, dispatchable 
generation to support the continued system load growth experienced in 
the TVA power service area over the past few years. These improvements 
would help TVA to expand and integrate renewable energy resources onto 
its transmission grid, which would allow TVA to advance its 
decarbonization goals.
    TVA has identified the need to improve the stability of its 
transmission system in the western portion of Tennessee. In this area, 
additional resources are needed to ensure that adequate transmission 
voltages are maintained within the desired limits. In addition, as 
identified in the 2019 IRP, TVA needs flexible, dispatchable power that 
can successfully integrate increasing amounts of renewable energy 
sources while ensuring it can meet required year-round generation and 
maximum capacity system demands and planning reserve margin targets.

Anticipated Environmental Impacts

    The EA or EIS will include an evaluation of the environmental, 
social, and economic impacts associated with implementing the proposed 
action. Because all ground disturbing activities associated with the 
proposal would occur within previously disturbed areas of TVA's Allen 
facility, TVA anticipates that the primary issues to be addressed in 
the EA or EIS will be impacts to air quality, climate change, 
environmental justice, and transportation. Other resource issues, 
including socioeconomics and surface water quality, will be addressed. 
Measures to avoid, minimize, and mitigate adverse effects will be 
identified and evaluated in the EA or EIS. TVA seeks input from the 
public during the scoping period on other relevant issues that should 
be considered and potential mitigation measures.

Anticipated Permits and Other Authorizations

    TVA anticipates seeking required permits or authorizations, as 
appropriate. TVA's proposed action may require issuance of an air 
permit under the Clean Air Act; an Individual or Nationwide Permit 
under Section 404 of the Clean Water Act; Section 401 Water Quality 
Certification; conformance with Executive Orders on Environmental 
Justice (12898), Wetlands (11990), Floodplain Management (11988), 
Migratory Birds (13186), and Invasive Species (13112); and compliance 
with Section 106 of the National Historic Preservation Act, Section 7 
of the Endangered Species Act, and other applicable Local, Federal, and 
State regulations.

Public Participation and Scoping Process

    Scoping, which is integral to the process for implementing NEPA, 
provides an early and open process to ensure that issues are identified 
early and properly studied; issues of little significance do not 
consume substantial time and effort; the draft EA or EIS is thorough 
and balanced; and delays caused by an inadequate EA or EIS are avoided. 
TVA seeks comment and participation from all interested parties for 
identification of potential alternatives, information, and analyses 
relevant to the proposed action in this EA or EIS. Public comments 
received during the scoping period will assist TVA in determining the 
appropriate level of NEPA review.
    Information about this project is available at https://www.tva.gov/NEPA, which includes a link to an online public comment page. Comments 
must be received or postmarked no later than November 13, 2023. 
Federal, state, local agencies, and Native American Tribes are also 
invited to provide comments. Please note that any comments received, 
including names and addresses, will become part of the project 
administrative record and will be available for public inspection. TVA 
plans to have an open house meeting during the scoping period. Visit 
https://www.tva.gov/NEPA to submit comments and obtain more information 
about the open house meeting.

EA or EIS Preparation and Schedule

    TVA will consider comments received during the scoping period and 
develop a scoping report which will be published online. The scoping 
report will summarize public and agency comments that were received and 
identify the projected schedule for completing the environmental review 
process. TVA will post a draft EA or EIS for public review and comment 
on the project web page. TVA anticipates holding a public open house 
after releasing the draft EA or EIS. TVA expects to release the draft 
EA or EIS in Spring or Summer 2024 and a final EA or EIS in late 2024. 
If an EIS is prepared, TVA would publish a Record of Decision at least 
30 days after the release of the final EIS.
    Authority: 40 CFR 1501.9.

Rebecca Tolene,
Vice President, Environment and Sustainability.
[FR Doc. 2023-22517 Filed 10-11-23; 8:45 am]
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