Recovery Act Funds to Power Comprehensive
Economic Development Program
May 13, 2009, Nashville, TN
— Governor Phil Bredesen today proposed the Volunteer State
Solar Initiative, a comprehensive solar-energy and economic development
program that will use up to $65 million in federal American Recovery
and Reinvestment Act funds to advance job creation, education,
research, and renewable-power production in Tennessee.
In announcing the new initiative, Bredesen
was joined by legislative leaders and key partners including Oak Ridge
National Laboratory (ORNL), the Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA),
and the University of Tennessee (UT). Support was registered from
Washington, D.C., by members of Tennessee's congressional delegation,
including U.S. House Science and Technology Committee Chairman Bart
Gordon and Congressman John Tanner, a member of the House Ways and
Means Committee.
Subject to approval by the U.S. Department
of Energy (DOE) and the Tennessee General Assembly, the proposed initiative
consists of two closely related projects:
• The Tennessee Solar Institute at UT and ORNL, which will focus
on basic science and industry partnerships to improve the affordability
and efficiency of solar products; and
• The West Tennessee Solar Farm near Brownsville, a five-megawatt
20-acre power generation facility at the Haywood County industrial
megasite that will be one of the largest installations in the Southeast
and serve as a demonstration tool for educations, research and economic
development purposes.
“Our success over the past few months in recruiting solar-industry
manufacturers to Tennessee shows we have bright economic prospects
for additional job growth in this area,” Bredesen said. “Now,
it’s time to build on our strengths and position Tennessee for
the next wave of investment in the renewable-energy sector. This approach
fits within our state’s broader job creation strategy, and addresses
President Obama’s short- and long-term goals in economic stimulus
and renewable energy.”
Congressman Gordon, an original supporter of the federal Energy
Independence and Security Act, which will make renewable energy
more accessible and affordable for consumers, lauded the project as
a forward-looking investment in Tennessee’s future.
“This statewide initiative puts Tennessee in a leading role
nationally to promote and capitalize on the solar industry, and in
turn curb our nation’s dependence on foreign oil,” Gordon
said. “It will also bring us closer to eventually developing
a regional high-tech corridor, connecting Oak Ridge and UT with Tennessee
Tech, MTSU, Vanderbilt, and the Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville,
Alabama.”
Congressman Tanner, a longtime advocate for rural economic development,
said the investment makes sense given the solar-related economic activity
already underway in Tennessee. “The solar farm represents a
near-term economic boost in West Tennessee with manufacturing and
installation jobs, and a long-range economic asset to help market
the Haywood County megasite,” Tanner said. “The broader
initiative is another step toward meeting our larger goal of energy
independence.”
The Volunteer State Solar Initiative is the most recent in a series
of landmark energy-related investments Tennessee has made over the
past two years under the leadership of Bredesen and the General Assembly.
Bredesen added: “Short-term, these new projects will go hand-in-hand
with creating or supporting jobs in construction, manufacturing and
installation, and scientific efforts to improve the affordability
and efficiency of solar energy. Long-term, they will strengthen Tennessee’s
reputation as a national energy research hub and emerging force in
the U.S. solar industry.”
For more information on the Volunteer State Solar Initiative, visit
the Tennessee Department of Economic & Community Development at
http://tennessee.gov/ecd/recovery/sep.html.
