Bull Run fossil plant is demolished as TVA clears the way for nuclear fusion
The demolition took place during the early morning of Saturday, June 28.
The skyline in Claxton, Tennessee, changed dramatically on the morning of June 28 as the Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA) demolished key structures at the retired Bull Run Fossil Plant.
The controlled implosion marked a symbolic and practical step forward as TVA pivots from coal to clean energy solutions.
People in the Claxton community gathered across the river to witness the big “boom,” as the long-time-standing structures tumbled to the groud. The impact from the demolition could be felt, and heard throughout the area.
Bull Run has been operational since 1967. It was TVA’s only single-generator coal-fired facility.
The plant officially ceased operations in 2023 as part of the federal utility’s broader decarbonization goals. Two towering smokestacks—one from the original build and a second added in 2008 as part of pollution control upgrades—were brought down on Saturday, along with a nearby steel structure used for emissions management.
This demolition clears the site for a bold new chapter in energy innovation.
Knoxville-based Type One Energy, a company aiming to commercialize nuclear fusion, has announced plans to build a prototype fusion power plant at the Bull Run location.
The company specializes in stellarators, advanced magnetic confinement systems that hold plasma at temperatures exceeding 100 million degrees Celsius—necessary for sustainable fusion reactions.
In addition to the fusion prototype, TVA intends to repurpose parts of the existing facility to launch its first synchronous condenser operation, designed to help regulate grid stability by absorbing or generating power as needed.
That project is expected to go online in 2027.
Together, these initiatives mark the end of the Bull Run era and introduce new opportunities for clean energy to become an even bigger powerhouse solution for the state and region.
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