The Tennessee Valley Authority’s high-tech grid control center entered full operations as the federal utility plans $4 billion in upgrades to its 16,000-mile system of transmission lines, interim CEO Mike Skaggs said Tuesday.
The investments are planned through 2030, the same year TVA expects its electricity demand from data centers will have doubled.
“We are formalizing a strategy that both expands and modernizes our transmission grid,” Skaggs said during a presentation for investors in TVA bonds. “A key part of this work is our new system operations center, which exceeds industry standards and includes advanced features to protect the grid.”
The secure center in Georgetown, around 30 miles northeast of Chattanooga, became fully operational in June with around 200 employees. The 180,000-square-foot center is on 167 acres in Meigs County, leaving room to expand if needed.
TVA describes the system operations center as the brain of the utility’s grid, controlling the flow of electrons from its power plants. The center was previously housed in a building at the utility’s Chattanooga Office Complex that is now considered surplus.