For more than 15 years, Seven States has been immersed in the emerging needs of the energy industry and the evolving supply of energy to the region. Seven States was created in partnership with TVA and more than 150 local power companies to finance utility-scale generation assets. In the early years, Seven States and TVA jointly owned an 800MW combined cycle plant in Southaven, Mississippi. More recently, Seven States was proud to announce that it had been awarded a $439,000,000 investment from the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s New ERA program to build 250MW of low-cost energy using a zero-interest loan. The shovel-ready project will bring online 250MW and help ease the State of Energy Emergency. The solar plant, owned and operated by Seven States, will deliver energy across the region to TN, AL, GA, MS, KY, NC, VA, and will power approximately 113,000 homes while creating over 100 construction jobs. The project continues to garner support from local, state and federal officials and is part of an “all of the above” approach to deliver power to consumers. This federal funding will provide our region with much-needed low-cost energy used by residents and businesses throughout the Valley. The Seven States team has been hard at work with our local power company member-owners to develop energy supply strategies that reach beyond this one project. This highlights our dedication to bring multiple energy sources to the grid. Over the years, our work has expanded beyond utility-scale generation to include distribution-scale technologies. We are enhancing reliability through the installation of battery storage units at regional locations such as the U.S. Space & Rocket Center in Huntsville, Alabama, and Montgomery Bell State Park in Burns, Tennessee. Seven States, a G&T cooperative, was created out of the need for innovative solutions. The awarded project is just one example of the innovative thinking and decisive action necessary to tackle the energy challenges of our time. We understand that economic development and job creation stop without power supply. Together with our public power model stakeholders, we intend to “ready the region” and respond to the increase in demand with additional power supply. An opportunity of this magnitude will drive our ability to attract and retain innovative businesses to the region and be a flagship model to the rest of the nation. This opportunity is significant for the region and we encourage you to learn more about the project here. We want to thank the Seven States Board of Directors and our partners for leading boldly to advocate for the USDA funding to supply much needed low-cost energy to consumers across the region. Your support demonstrates how everyone wins when we take innovative action to deliver power to those we serve.

At Seven States, we take pride in fostering innovation and supporting employees who are building the grid of the future. Joe Knox, our Director of Technology Deployment, recently contributed to a research paper on the future of electric vehicle (EV) chargers. His expertise and dedication are helping shape transportation infrastructure and manage additional demand for energy. As the demand for EVs continues to grow, the need for efficient, reliable, and accessible charging infrastructure is more critical than ever. Knox contributed to the work of PhD candidate Mehdi Khaleghian of the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga. Knox served as a key industry expert by providing EV charging data for the project. Together, they explored methods to better predict charging station outcomes, which will benefit EV drivers, station owners, and electric utility operators. To date, Seven States has installed more than 250 EV charging stations across 6 different states – that’s nearly 500 EV charging ports in under 4 years. The research paper focuses on the data gleaned from EV charging installations and will inform the collective work of experts within the EV sector as they move forward in building a dynamic power grid. Specifically, the paper explores using embedding vectors to capture the latent characteristics of EV charging stations based on user-station interactions. These factors help improve predictive tasks such as utilization forecasting and infrastructure planning through the use of Machine Learning Models. “Working on this project was an exciting opportunity to contribute to the future of EV charging,” said Knox. “We explored ways to make charging faster, more efficient, and better integrated with the grid. It’s rewarding to see how our research can shape real-world solutions.” As we continue to manage the transition to electric mobility and the infrastructure to support it, real-time analytics from actual deployments lead to data driven decisions, thereby removing the guesswork from next steps. Knox’s contributions demonstrate the power of collaboration and innovation in tackling the challenges of tomorrow. We’re proud to have such forward-thinking minds on our team, driving progress and making a lasting impact on the energy industry. To view Seven States’ EV charging deployments, visit our interactive map.

Cody Durham knows the world of technology has evolved over the years. As the General Manager and CEO of Tishomingo County Electric Power Association, he’s been able to channel that...

With over 20 years of experience in the industry, Brad Coppock has witnessed firsthand the evolution of technology and its impact on the Valley. As General Manager of Powell Valley...