Kingston Reservation Operations

Roane County, Tennessee

Supplemental Environmental Impact Statement

February 2026 – An increase in power demand and associated reliability concerns have affected the original purpose and need of the Kingston Fossil Plant (KIF) Retirement Environmental Impact Statement (EIS), prompting TVA to prepare a Supplemental EIS (SEIS) that assesses the impacts associated with a new proposed alternative.  The new proposed alternative involves continuing the operation of all nine KIF coal-fired units along with the previously analyzed combined cycle and aeroderivative natural gas-fired units, and a 100-megawatt (MW) Battery Energy Storage System (BESS). The previously evaluated 3 to 4 MW solar facility is not included in the proposed alternative because of site constraints. The proposed alternative would allow for the use of an existing asset to ensure reliable service to TVA customers at the lowest feasible cost to meet this growing demand.  

The SEIS was prepared in accordance with the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969, as amended (NEPA) (42 United States [U.S.] Code [USC] § 4321 et seq.), TVA’s NEPA procedures (18 Code of Federal Regulations [CFR] Part 1318]), and Executive Order (EO) 14154 (Unleashing American Energy) and informs decision-makers, regulatory agencies, and the public of the potential environmental, cultural, and socioeconomic impacts of the proposed alternative. The SEIS also addresses requirements associated with relevant federal, state, and local regulations, including but not limited to Section 106 of the National Historic Preservation Act, Section 7 of the Endangered Species Act (ESA), and Sections 401 and 404 of the Clean Water Act (CWA).

Final Environmental Impact Statement and Record of Decision

In February 2024, the Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA) issued the final environmental impact statement (FEIS) evaluating the environmental effects of the retirement and demolition of Kingston Fossil Plant’s (KIF) nine coal-fired units by the end of 2027 and the construction and operation of placement generation. In the April 2, 2024, Record of Decision (ROD), TVA elected the phased decommissioning, decontamination, and demolition of the nine KIF units. TVA proposed to replace the generation of the retired units with the construction and operation of facilities to replace the retired generation that include a single natural gas-fired combined cycle (CC) plant, 16 dual-fuel aeroderivative combustion turbines (aero CTs) and new switchyard, a 3 to 4 megawatt solar site, a 100 megawatt Battery Energy Storage System (BESS), and associated infrastructure on TVA’s Kington Reservation. Construction at the KIG is ongoing. The nine KIF coal units have not retired and are currently operating.  

Public Involvement

In accordance with TVA’s NEPA regulations §1318.401, during the development of the SEIS, TVA obtained comments from the US Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA). Substantive comments were addressed in the SEIS, and the comments are summarized in Appendix B. Additionally, the scoping and public involvement summarized in the Final EIS were incorporated into the SEIS by reference.

In June and July 2021, TVA conducted public scoping and requested public comments during the development of the KIF Retirement EIS. Comments received during the scoping period are summarized in a Scoping Report (see “Related Documents” below).

TVA published a Draft EIS on May 12, 2023, for public review and comment (see “Related Documents” below). During the public comment period (May 12 to July 3, 2023), TVA hosted a virtual public meeting (June 8) and public meetings in Rockwood (June 13) and Kingston (June 14) to share information about the proposal and the draft environmental analyses, to gather additional input from the public, and to answer questions and address concerns. The public submitted comments to TVA at these meetings, via an online form, and by mail and email.

TVA received 602 comments on the DEIS. TVA carefully reviewed all of the substantive comments received. To avoid repetition, TVA grouped similar comments and produced one synthesized response for each comment grouping that resulted in responses to approximately 229 comment groupings. TVA’s responses to the comments can be found in Appendix D of the Final EIS.

Recordings From the Meetings:

Virtual Meeting Recording