⚡️Electricity geek @ TVA | 💦 Founder @ Swimmly | Father | Opinions / tweets = my own
Nashville
Joined June 2009
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This guy was casually driving around with at least 7 OG iMac G3s rolling around in the back of his trailer. Probably on the way to the dump with zero idea he’s throwing away the product that saved Apple from extinction in 1998 🤦🏻♂️
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👏⚛️ MAJOR milestone for nuclear fusion! On June 9, Tennessee will become the first state in the U.S. to establish a fusion-specific regulatory framework—a crucial step in licensing fusion machines.
My former TDEC colleagues are leading the nation by setting clear, technology-agnostic regulations for fusion projects, paving the way for fusion licensing and development. This regulatory foundation supports exciting initiatives, like the Project Infinity collaboration between Type One Energy and @TVAnews at the former Bull Run site.
The agreement outlines Phase 1: deploying the Infinity One stellarator prototype (targeting commercial startup by 2029), followed by Infinity Two, a 350 MWe commercial fusion pilot plant—potentially the first commercial fusion reactor in the world—with construction hoped to begin in 2028
This is a MAJOR milestone for fusion in the US, right here in Tennessee. Onward! ⚛️
#nuclear #Tennessee #fusion – at Tennessee, USA
Tennessee continues to lead the nation in nuclear innovation. On June 9, we will become the first state in the nation to implement a technology-neutral approach to fusion regulation. 🙌
“This latest step supercharges our reputation as the global hub for nuclear innovation and positions us as the most responsive state for advanced nuclear companies looking to call Tennessee home.” — @TNEnvironment Commissioner David Salyers
The framework supports the continued growth of Tennessee's advanced energy sector, including @typeoneenergy's commercial fusion project near Oak Ridge. ⚛️ #SoundsLikeTN
Read more: tn.gov/environment/news/2026…
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R2 in Nashville. Kid-approved. Great job, @Rivian 👏 👏 – at Nashville, TN
If this is where the frontier of humanoid robots is today, imagine where they'll be in 2-3 years. Household duties like laundry, dishes, and even yardwork will be tablestakes for robots.
Figure taught two robots to make a bed together - fully autonomous
Honestly, they’re better at it than most humans
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⚛️ 41% Nuclear⚡
This week @TVAnews reported that 41% of its generation in the first half of the fiscal year came from nuclear — a return to a meaningful milestone (40%+) that underscores the strength, diversity, and reliability of our fleet, as well as the dedication of our workforce.
For context, large U.S. utility peers operate between the 0%–30% nuclear range.
That makes TVA’s nuclear mix a clear outlier — in a very positive way.
This kind of performance doesn't happen by accident. Previous nuclear investments like Watts Bar 2 combined with a sustained focus on reliability improvements over the last several years has restored the capacity factor of our 8,500 megawatt nuclear fleet to top-tier levels. Planning and execution excellence by thousands of employees ensure our fleet is ready so TVA can deliver on our mission of energy reliability and affordability. All this while maintaining competitive rates in an environment of significant cost pressures.
In addition, Mike Skaggs (our new interim CEO) has reinforced a strong pro‑nuclear direction, positioning TVA not just to sustain this performance, but to help lead the U.S. into the next phase of nuclear development. And with clear support from state leaders in Tennessee, Alabama, and Kentucky, you might say the future of nuclear is bright across the Tennessee Valley 😎
I'm proud to see TVA continue to demonstrate what a high‑performing, nuclear‑forward system can deliver for reliability and affordability. And I'm even more excited to see what the future holds 🙌
Onward!
#tva #Nuclear #tennessee
Nuclear reaches 41% of TVA’s power supply
TVA interim CEO Mike Skaggs said he wants to “work with the federal administration and our board of directors to clarify TVA’s path going forward.” utilitydive.com/news/nuclear…
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⚛️⚡️At 3.9 GW across 3 units, Browns Ferry Nuclear is one of the largest plants in North America. And after a successful refueling and maintenance outage of unit 3 it’ll deliver continuous and carbon-free baseload power throughout the summer 💪 Hats off to the incredible BFN team on another successful outage!
#nuclear #energy #tva
Browns Ferry Nuclear Plant Unit 3 has safely returned to the TVA electric grid, marking the successful completion of a scheduled refueling and maintenance outage.
With all three units, Browns Ferry can produce up to 3,954 MW of electricity, powering more than two million homes and businesses in the Tennessee Valley. 🙌 ⚛️
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Under ideal conditions, on select spring/fall days, solar and wind look like a MIRACLE energy source. But this graph looks quite different during winter storms when: 1) cold temps cause peak demand before sunrise, 2) multi-day cloud cover + snow virtually eliminate solar production, 3) life-saving electric heating relies almost entirely on gas + coal + nuclear.
I'd love to see the same graph on Jan 26th, 2026 (during Winter Storm Fern)...
We need a balanced, all-of-the-above approach to generation, but we also need to be intellectually honest about the limitations of those energy sources. This is an interesting milestone, but cherry-picking a visual under ideal conditions doesn't tell an accurate story of the needs of the grid either.
Pretty astonishing. In Texas, between 10:00 am and 4:00 p.m., 80-90% of electricity comes from carbon free sources. And storage is already a significant contributor in the early morning and evening
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👏 ⚡️ Much more work to be done, but this is a great step on an important topic.
Today President Trump obtained a pledge from America’s leading tech companies that new data centers would not increase electricity prices for residential consumers.
These companies (including Amazon, Google, Meta, Microsoft, OpenAI, Oracle, and xAI) signed the “Ratepayer Protection Pledge” under which they agree to cover the costs of all new power generation required for their data centers, ensuring such costs are not passed onto American households.
This is a much better approach to affordability than Bernie Sanders’ total ban on new data centers, which would halt the construction boom currently driving wage growth and job growth for blue-collar workers. In fact, the Ratepayer Protection Pledge will lower electricity prices when AI companies pay for grid upgrades and sell their excess power back to the grid.
Since the beginning of his second term, President Trump has championed the idea of letting our leading AI companies become power companies, and now this idea is becoming a reality thanks to his leadership and the commitments of these strong American companies.
The right approach to data centers is not to stop progress altogether, but rather to protect residential rate payers from price increases, while making it easier to stand up new power generation.
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Tunnels and better transit aren’t mutually exclusive. This project 1) doesn’t cost the city and 2) will relieve traffic from rideshare drivers downtown and at the airport. In the meantime, the city’s $3B choose how you move program (approved by voters 15 months ago) is underway to expand transit, sidewalks, etc. We can, and will, have both and Nashville will be better for it because more options are better. @elonmusk @boringcompany
This is the most useless infrastructure project imaginable for a city in desperate need of real public transit.
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🤔 Serious question for determining the upper limit of solar adoption: under what scenario could solar + storage can meet demand during winter storms like Fern? What size batteries would be needed to ride through multi-day winter events? And what’s the capital cost and associated LCOE for a scenario like this?
Winter-peaking regions pose a major challenge for solar adoption beyond say ~20% of net annual generation. Case in point: During WS Fern, the Tennessee Valley saw multiple consecutive cloudy days (with snow + freezing rain), followed by extended severe cold. Throughout a 5 day period (1/23-1/27) Nashville had near-continuous cloud cover and an average temp of 21F. The ~1500 MW of solar on TVA’s system contributed virtually no generation during this period. Same challenge exists for the rest of the Northeast, Midwest, and parts of the Southeast, where 50% of the population lives.
Solar is a much easier sell for summer-peaking regions like California, Texas, and Florida (where influential solar advocates like @Elonmusk and @chamath happen to live). But when residents in the rest of the country depend on electricity for heating the most, solar is completely absent. It’s nuclear, gas, coal, and hydro that keeps homes warm.
Ironically enough, Elon (through @xai) donated hundreds of gas generators, not solar panels, to homeowners who lost power due to the ice storm.
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Scary scenes from North Mississippi. 23k still without power from WS Fern.
Day 14 without power in North Mississippi after Winter Storm Fern's ice apocalypse...trees snapped like twigs, lines down everywhere, and folks are running out of food, fuel, and hope. Over 23,000 still in the dark, with Benton County hitting nearly two weeks of blackout hell.
People can't even boil water for advisories without electricity, turning a bad situation into a life-threatening one.
It's desperate out there...families hunkered down, generators failing, supplies dwindling.
The ice knocked down so many trees it's like a war zone, blocking roads and crews.
But FEMA's bureaucratic BS on tree removal contracts is straight-up idiotic...subcontractors through the Army Corps are installing generators, sure, but the chainsaw teams are moving at snail's pace amid all the red tape.
Lives are on the line, and FEMA and State contracts are waiting on paperwork? Governor Reeves, time to step up! Open those contracts wide, slash the red tape, and let local crews and volunteers flood in to clear this mess NOW.
You've got the power..use it to save Mississippians before it's too late.
Not a peep from media outlets.
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Power outages aren't political. There are counties in Mississippi that have 20%+ customers without power after 11 days where there isn't a democrat for miles. Lafayette County, MS (Tupelo) still has more outages than NES, but only 5% of the customers. This storm was *that* bad.
Data: @PowerOutage_us (screen grab 10:45 AM)
11 days post-Winter Storm Fern, Here's a look at current outages in the region:
Mississippi: 24,440
Texas: 8,629
Tennessee: 4,687
Data: @PowerOutage_us (screen grab at ~10:45 AM, 2/5/2026)
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🔋 The first large-scale (500 MW+) nuclear power plants have been operating for 50+ years in the U.S.—and may last 100 years.
Here’s why nuclear is worth investing in for the long haul 🧵
(7/8)
As we plan for a future that requires more electricity that is reliable and low-carbon, nuclear offers something rare:
Clean energy that lasts generations.
Let’s not overlook the power of what’s already working—and what could keep working for 100 years.
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