The Tennessee Valley Authority reported a gain in net income in the last fiscal year citing efforts to operate more efficiently. Despite a slow winter due to warmer temperatures and less rainfall, the TVA reported $313 million for the first half of fiscal year for 2017 - $32 million more than the same period last year.
TVA spokesperson Scott Brooks said revenue was generated through ‘efficiencies in operating systems’ such as power from the new Watts Bar Nuclear Generating Station.
“We like a good amount of rain because hydropower is our cheapest source of generation and we can use that rainfall to produce power. But behind that is nuclear power and we brought Watts Bar unit 2 online in October of 2016, which is 24/7 baseload power that’s carbon-free and less expensive to operate than some of our other sources.” Brooks said.
The Watts Bar Unit 2 was the nation’s first new nuclear unit in the 21st Century.
