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“TVA
helped Thyssen Dover perform engineering analysis work of our
power needs. As a result we were able to reduce the cost requirements
for electrical equipment by 25%. TVA also advised us on our landscaping.
We took their suggestions and improved our whole building facade
1,000% because of the way it looks.”
—Vince
Avirett, Manufacturing
Projects Manager, Thyssen Dover Elevator Co., Middleton, Tenn.
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Small-Business
Support
TVA’s
commitment to economic development is not limited to large projects.
In the past decade 18 small-business incubators jointly sponsored by
TVA and local communities have helped launch more than 650 active businesses
and create 4,900 active jobs. Incubators help new businesses minimize
start-up costs by sharing space, services, and equipment. Most incubators
offer on-site technical support, and TVA’s incubator loan fund
helps some tenants meet short-term needs for capital and cash flow.
Residential
Incentives
TVA’s
commitment to economic growth extends to residential consumers. TVA
and distributors of TVA power have worked together to create the energy
right® program, which offers a combination of low-interest loans
and incentives to customers who install heat pumps and who buy all-electric
homes and energy-efficient manufactured homes. This program, which grew
by 29 percent in 1999, has had a positive impact on more than 110,000
Valley homes since its inception.
Corporate
Citizen
TVA is
itself a Valley resident and takes pride in being a good corporate citizen,
stoking the fires of economic growth through its own payroll, purchases,
and tax-equivalent payments.
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“One
of Oakhaven’s entrepreneurial programs, the Tomato Ranch,
teaches science, accounting, advertising copywriting, computer
graphics, and management. The plan is to produce heirloom tomato
plants for sale to our community and eventually online. By the
time they’re done, the students will have covered everything
from hybridizing tomatoes to boardroom politics.
If TVA hadn’t donated its surplus computers, as well as the
mentoring and tutoring by TVA employees, we’d have been two
years behind.”
—Tom
Scruggs, Principal,
Oakhaven School, Memphis, Tenn.
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The wages and salaries
of TVA’s 13,322 employees add more than $800 million a year to
the regional economy. TVA purchases of goods and services for the past
year brought more than $950 million to the coffers of Valley-based businesses.
And in 1999 Valley schools and other community endeavors shared in more
than $300 million that TVA paid state and local governments in tax-equivalent
payments, making TVA one of the region’s biggest “taxpayers.”
Conclusion
Whether
it’s helping Valley residents educate their children, or helping
local communities attract new jobs . . .
Whether it’s
helping homeowners get the most from every energy dollar, or helping
small businesses get off the ground . . .
Wherever there
has been a need for technical expertise . . .
Whenever a need
has arisen for the broad-based support only a public utility can provide,
TVA has been there, consistently working for the public good as a faithful
steward of the Valley’s resources and a champion for high-quality
economic growth.•
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