North Alabama Congressman Dale Strong told TVA leaders in a letter Tuesday that he is “skeptical” that the plan announced by the federal utility will be sufficient to avoid future strategic power outages in the event of extreme weather.

TVA released its after-action report that outlined plans to avoid outages – also known as rolling blackouts – that were necessary in December over a two-day period when temperatures dipped below zero. TVA made temporary cuts to power to help preserve its electrical grid, which it said was under record demand.

• Read full letter at end

It was the first time in TVA’s 90-year history that it resorted to intentionally cutting power to customers for the sake of preserving the power grid.

Strong, who lives in the unincorporated community of Monrovia outside Huntsville, has said his home was subject to two blackouts on Christmas Eve.

In the letter addressed to TVA President and CEO Jeffrey Lyash and copied to TVA board members – which includes Chair Joe Ritch of Huntsville – Strong said he appreciated TVA’s review but still had doubts.

“I reman skeptical that the proposed solutions adequately address potential near-term resiliency insufficiencies of the power grid that services north Alabama,” Strong said in the letter. “As such, I respectfully request that you provide my office with details on the short-term steps TVA has taken to ensure that its grid remains fully operational, and its customers experience no interruption in service.”

Among TVA’s findings in the report was a need to modernize its system and to find ways to keep additional power in reserve. And the utility again accepted responsibility for failing to provide reliable electricity to customers on Dec. 23-24 as a result of the abnormally cold temperatures.

In the Huntsville area, Huntsville Utilities said about 60 percent of customers had at least one blackout and most having two blackouts that lasted about 30 minutes.

Among the solutions outlined by TVA’s report:

• Investing in and modernizing the system with $18 billion since 2014 and $3 billion through 2027.
• A goal of 10,000 megawatts of solar energy by 2035.
• Building 3,800 megawatts of new generation.
• Pursuing a small modular nuclear reactor at the Clinch River site in Oak Ridge, Tenn.
• Exploring energy storage, including batteries and pumped hydropower and hydrogen.

The blackouts have also been a concern of Huntsville Mayor Tommy Battle, who in February convened a panel discussion with Huntsville Utilities and TVA officials, including Ritch.

Population growth in north Alabama will create additional demand for electricity in the future, an issue spotlighted by both Strong and Battle.

“Given north Alabama’s burgeoning economy and population growth, we must ensure that our infrastructure can meet the needs of existing and incoming government organizations, business entities, residents and all those wishing to make north Alabama home,” Strong said in the letter.