As part of its ongoing process to clear the Paradise Fossil Plant site for future use, TVA crews and partners safely imploded the three 435-plus foot tall cooling towers on Nov.10.

TVA is taking a number of steps to return the site to “brownfield” status around 2030, making way for potential new development. A portion of the site already houses the gas-fired Paradise Combined Cycle Plant, opened in 2017. TVA is also constructing additional gas-fired combustion turbines at Paradise.

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​TVA retired Paradise Fossil Units 1 and 2 in 2017. Paradise Unit 3 ceased operation in Feb. 2020, effectively closing the coal-fired plant.

“The decommissioning program directly aligns with TVA’s commitment to environmental stewardship and economic development as we execute safe, environmentally sound, and cost-effective projects across TVA’s power service area,” said Charles Chappell, general manager, Decommissioning.

During the next several decades, TVA is investing billions of dollars to build the energy system of the future, which will continue to provide, increasingly carbon-free, low-cost, reliable power. This includes new lower-carbon and carbon-free generation facilities, renewable energy, energy innovations and transmission enhancements to better meet the Tennessee Valley’s energy needs.