U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

Official websites use .gov
A .gov website belongs to an official government organization in the United States.

Https

Secure .gov websites use HTTPS
A lock () or https:// means you’ve safely connected to the .gov website. Share sensitive information only on official, secure websites.

TVA’s Cumberland Energy Solution Project

Report Information

Date Issued
Report Number
2023-17462
Report Type
Inspection / Evaluation
Description
The Office of the Inspector General determined the Cumberland Energy Solution project complied with most elements of scope management and the bid process. However, we identified certain areas under each process that need improvement to help mitigate potential Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA) risk. In summary:• TVA’s Cybersecurity, a business unit under TVA’s Technology and Innovation business unit, was not included as a stakeholder throughout the project. • TVA did not adequately mitigate risks related to the use of equipment from nondesignated countries. Specifically,- Cybersecurity concerns related to the use of equipment from a nondesignated country had not been evaluated. - Some procurements were not evaluated for compliance with the Trade Agreements Act.• The Cumberland Energy Solution project risk register could be improved related to (1) project staffing and (2) gas pipeline construction. • TVA’s contract pricing strategies may cause TVA to pay inflated costs.
Joint Report
Yes
Participating OIG
Tennessee Valley Authority OIG
Agency Wide
Yes (agency-wide)
Questioned Costs
$0
Funds for Better Use
$0
View report on Oversight.gov

Recommendations

We recommend the Senior Vice President, Generation Projects and Fleet Services, take action to ensure project managers include all required parties on current and future major projects.

We recommend the Senior Vice President, Generation Projects and Fleet Services, work with Tennessee Valley Authority’s Cybersecurity organization to assess the Cumberland Energy Solution project for other potential cybersecurity risks.

We recommend the Vice President, Supply Chain, evaluate its Trade Agreements Act compliance process and make changes as needed to improve compliance.

We recommend the Senior Vice President, Generation Projects and Fleet Services, evaluate the project staffing risks and gas pipeline construction impacts and mitigation strategies, and make changes to the risk register as needed.

We recommend the Senior Vice President, Generation Projects and Fleet Services, in conjunction with the Vice President, Supply Chain • Evaluate alternative contracting strategies for major projects. • Take steps to determine the reasonableness of fixed prices and project change requests.