Tennessee Valley Authority
Our Customers
The Tennessee Valley Authority provides power to three main customer groups:
Distributors
There are {local} distributors—municipal utility companies and cooperatives—that resell TVA power to consumers. The municipal utilities make up the largest of block of TVA customers. Cooperatives are customer-owned companies, many of which were originally formed to bring electricity to the farthest reaches of the TVA region. The two groups represent the wholesale base of TVA’s business, accounting for 85 percent of total revenue.
The Tennessee Valley Public Power Association is a regional nonprofit service organization that represents the interests of consumer-owned electric utilities operating within TVA’s service area. Association members include both municipal and electric cooperatives. The Tennessee Valley Public Power Association serves as an advocate for its members’ interests with the public, in the political process, and with TVA. Visit the organization's web site for more information on the individual power distributors.
Directly served customers
TVA provides power directly to about {large} large, energy-intensive industrial customers and {federal} federal installations. These directly served customers include producers of primary metals, chemicals, industrial gases, forest products and nuclear fuel for power plants.
The Tennessee Valley Industrial Committee consists of 35 of these directly served customers who operate 54 facilities in the TVA service area. They employ more than 30,000 people in predominantly high wage and salaried positions. TVIC members purchased 17 percent of TVA’s total power output in the fiscal year that ended Sept. 30, 2011. During this period, they paid TVA $1.44 billion for electricity, accounting for 12 percent of TVA’s total revenues for the fiscal year.
Off-system customers
Twelve surrounding utilities buy power from TVA on the interchange market. Sales to these utilities represent 4 percent of TVA’s total revenue.
