TVA CEO Tom Kilgore (Image:TVA)
The CEO of the Tennessee Valley Authority is retiring. Tom Kilgore has been the head of the utility since 2006. Kilgore waited until the very end of TVA’s board of directors meeting to break the news.
“I’m formally announcing today, I told the board that I want to retire soon. I gave them four to six months, with a strong preference for four months. But I don’t want to walk out until they’ve got my successor.”
Board members praised Kilgore, saying he brought an urgently needed consistency in leadership. They pointed to the simplifying of electric rates and a steady hand during crises. Those include a massive coal ash spill and setbacks in a new emphasis on nuclear power.
Construction on a new reactor at Watts Bar is behind schedule and two billion dollars over budget. TVA’s Browns Ferry plant in Alabama has been cited by federal regulators for numerous safety violations.
TVA Board Chair Bill Sansom says a search is already underway for Kilgore’s successor.
On Air - 90.3 WPLN-FM