TVA Selects Bechtel To Complete Watts Bar 2

October 15, 2007

After a rigorous review process, TVA has selected Bechtel Power Corp. to lead the engineering, procurement and construction work necessary to complete Unit 2 at Watts Bar Nuclear Plant near Spring City, Tenn.

At its Aug. 1 meeting, the TVA Board unanimously approved completing Watts Bar Unit 2 at an estimated cost of $2.49 billion, which includes the scope of work in the Bechtel contract and other costs to complete the project and start up the unit.

“Today’s announcement is the conclusion of a comprehensive and rigorous competitive-bidding process involving the nation’s best power-engineering and construction firms,” said TVA President and CEO Tom Kilgore. “With oversight by TVA, Bechtel will be responsible for completing the engineering design, procuring equipment and materials and finishing the physical construction of Watts Bar Unit 2.”

Five firms were invited to bid on the work, based on their track records for completing large nuclear engineering-and-construction projects and their quality- assurance programs.

Proposals were received from two firms, Bechtel and Shaw/Stone & Webster. TVA selected Bechtel’s proposal based on Bechtel’s technical capability, overall value and pricing, quality of proposed project team and other key attributes.

In the selection process, TVA conducted a detailed bid-evaluation of the proposals. A technical sub-team reviewed and evaluated the technical portion of each proposal. A separate team reviewed and evaluated the pricing and the financial aspects of the proposals.

“TVA’s oversight of Bechtel will include incorporating the lessons learned from the restart of Unit 1 at our Browns Ferry Nuclear Plant in Alabama,” said Kilgore. Bechtel provided technical and engineering services for the five-year project to successfully restart the Browns Ferry unit last May.

“The completion of Watts Bar Unit 2 is TVA’s best choice for generating the clean, safe, reliable, low-cost electricity needed to help meet the region’s growing power needs by 2013,” Kilgore said. When completed, Watts Bar Unit 2 will provide more than 1,200 megawatts of electricity − enough power to serve about 650,000 Tennessee Valley homes.

TVA is the nation’s largest public power provider and is completely self-financing. TVA provides power to large industries and 158 power distributors that serve approximately 8.7 million consumers in seven southeastern states. TVA also manages the Tennessee River and its tributaries to provide multiple benefits, including flood damage reduction, navigation, water quality and recreation.

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