Russellville Electric Board General Manager Derrick Moore will notify Tennessee Valley Authority officials that the REB will not participate in a grant program that would see an electric charging station built in Russellville after the board voted not to participate in the program.
The board voted unanimously to not participate in TVA’s Fast Charge Network Program at its May 27th meeting.
The Fast Charge Network Program offers a 80/20 grant for electric vehicle charging infrastructure, with TVA funding 80% of eligible project costs and local power companies like the Russellville Electric Board covering the remaining 20%. This program aims to expand the availability of fast-charging stations, particularly along major travel corridors.
In addition to TVA local power company customers, the Fast Charge Network Program is available to local governmental entities, private companies and non-profit organizations.
Board member James McDuffa said he had looked into the program and concluded ‘the numbers don’t work’ if REB decided to participate in the program.
McDuffa said there are only around 13,000 electric vehicles in Alabama and the charging station would not generate enough income to justify the cost of installing it.
According to the United States Department of Energy, there were 13,047 electric vehicles registered in Alabama in 2024. The board’s consensus was that its service area doesn’t contain enough electric vehicles to warrant the expense of building a charging station.
The closest public charging station to the City of Russellville is in Tuscumbia. That station is owned and operated by Tuscumbia Utilities, which is under the authority of the City of Tuscumbia.
A search for EV charging stations along Alabama 24 shows the closest one to the east is located in Decatur. To the west, the first charging station would be in Tupelo off of Interstate 22.
The board’s decision did not sit well with Russellville District Two City Councilman Darren Woodruff. Woodruff, an electric vehicle owner, said the presence of a charging station in the City of Russellville would not only benefit owners of electric vehicles, but would also spur economic development for the city.
“It’s a sad day in the City of Russellville when Russellville’s own electric board is against economic development in the city it’s located,” Woodruff said.
“People would come to Russellville to charge their vehicles and while here, they would visit restaurants, stores and spend money in our city,” Woodruff said. “This a great opportunity missed by this board with TVA paying 80% of the costs. Electric vehicles are not going away. Their numbers will continue to grow and if TVA officials did not see the long-term potential in this infrastructure, they would never offer to incur 80% of the installation costs.”
In other agenda items at the May 27th meeting, the board:
—voted unanimously to award $2,500 of its Community Care Fund to Calvary Baptist Church’s Faith Mission Outreach. Calvary Pastor Wade Wallace wrote a letter to the REB asking for a $5,000 donation of Community Care Fund monies.
The board will donate $2,500 and TVA will match with $2,500 of its own funds going to Faith Mission Outreach. The board’s approval of the request was conditioned on there being sufficient funds in REB’s Community Care Fund account.
—voted to move its June meeting to June 16, 2025, at 5 p.m.
