Bristol Virginia Utilities
| Municipal | |
| Industry |
Utility Telecommunications |
| Founded | Bristol, Virginia 1945 |
| Headquarters | Bristol, Virginia, United States |
Area served |
Bristol, Virginia Washington County, Virginia Southwest Virginia |
Number of employees | 166 |
| Divisions | OptiNet |
| Website | BVU Homepage |
BVU Authority (BVU) is a utility system that provides electric, water, wastewater and fiber-optic telecommunication and information services to the City of Bristol, Virginia and the surrounding area. On July 1, 2010, BVU moved from being a board under the direct control of the City of Bristol, to form a new subdivision of VA state government.[1]
BVU is lauded, along with the public power electric utilities of Chattanooga, TN and Lafayette, LA, as having "the best broadband networks in America" [a] by the Institute for Local Self-Reliance . BVU's network is somewhat more remarkable given the town's small size and its successful bids to build larger cities' fiber-optic grids.
Electricity Provider
BVU provides electricity, water, wastewater and fiber- optic telecommunication and information services to the City of Bristol, Virginia; Washington County, Virginia and Abingdon, Virginia. These combined systems employ approximately 158 people. We are governed by a nine-member Board. Eight members are from the City of Bristol and one member is from the Washington County Board of Supervisors. The BVU Board meets on the fourth Monday of each month at 12:15 p.m. at BVU’s main office.
The City of Bristol Virginia, on June 30, 1945, purchased the electric distribution facilities of the former East Tennessee Light and Power Company from the Tennessee Valley Authority. The Bristol Virginia Power Board was created to manage the electric system. On November 13, 1951, the Power Board was succeeded by the Utilities Board, created by Article V of The City Code (Sections 2-25 through 2-28), as provided for in the Code of Virginia, Section 15.1-292, to manage the Electric Power and Light System, the Water System, and Sewerage System of the City. Electric power was purchased from the Tennessee Valley Authority from June 1945 until December 31, 1997. At which time BVU changed power suppliers and began purchasing power from Cinergy Corporation, Cincinnati, Ohio. The Cinergy wholesale electric contract lasted seven years, ending December 31, 2004. American Electric Power (AEP) was selected for a three-year contract to provide wholesale electricity from January 1, 2005 to December 31, 2008. The Tennessee Valley Authority is the current wholesale electricity provider with a 20-year contract beginning January 1, 2008. On July 1, 2010, the Utilities Board was succeeded by the BVU Authority Board – making BVU an authority of the State of Virginia. BVU´s Electric System provides electric power to over 16,300 consumers in a 125 square mile service area, comprising the City of Bristol, Virginia; Washington County, Virginia; Scott County, Virginia and Sullivan County, Tennessee. BVU has ten substations and approximately 577 miles of distribution lines and 29 miles of transmission lines.
BVU´s water treatment plant was constructed in 1954 with 5 million gallons per day capacity and was expanded to a capacity of 10 million gallons per day in 1978. Raw water is pumped approximately two miles from South Holston Lake to the filtration plant, where it is treated by the "rapid sand" filtration process. The treatment plant is located on Route 75, about 3 miles south of Abingdon, Virginia. The Water System serves approximately 7,900 consumers in the City of Bristol, Virginia and also sells bulk water to other water authorities.
BVU administers a sewer collector system in Bristol, Virginia and portions of Washington County, Virginia, which flows to a 15 million gallons per day wastewater treatment plant in Sullivan County, Tennessee. The wastewater treatment plant is jointly owned by Bristol, Virginia and Bristol, Tennessee. A unique feature of the plant is a state-of-the-art in-vessel composting facility, which combines sludge from the treatment plant with wood waste collected throughout the two Cities to produce a high quality composted material very useful in landscaping and soil amendments. The Wastewater System serves approximately 7,700 consumers in the City of Bristol, Virginia, as well as the industries located in the Bristol-Washington County Industrial Park. The wastewater treatment plant is located in Sullivan County, Tennessee and is jointly owned and operated with the City of Bristol, Tennessee.
OptiNet Division
OptiNet is a nonprofit division of BVU, launched in 2001, that provides telecommunication services to approximately 9,500 customers in areas around Southwest Virginia. OptiNet is known for its pioneering work in the area of municipal broadband throughout the area. BVU is acknowledged as the first municipal utility in the United States to deploy an all-fiber network offering the triple play of video, voice and data services. Offering digital cable, telephone service and high-speed internet from a remote-area utility provider makes BVU exceptional, even on a global level.
BVU FOCUS is an innovative consulting, operations and management firm operating under the umbrella of BVU. FOCUS currently employs a total of 63 persons – 40 of which operate a remote facility in Mooresville, North Carolina. BVU was the first municipal entity in the United States to build a fiber-to-the-premise network offering the “triple-play” of telephone, cable and Internet services. With BVU´s experience and proven results, BVU FOCUS offers customized levels of assistance to municipal entities interested in finding comprehensive solutions to meet their communities´ specific needs for delivering telecommunications and information services and/or assisting with their traditional utility operations.
BVU is heavily involved in the local community and promoting economic development efforts in the City of Bristol, Virginia. BVU works in conjunction with the Economic Development Committee and its Executive Director to promote the Bristol, Virginia area to prospective industrial and commercial establishments. BVU is also involved in providing annual visitations, consultations and services to local existing industries, and believes the Existing Industry Program to be a vital part of Bristol, Virginia´s economic development. BVU provides fifty percent of the funding for the Bristol, Virginia Economic Development Department and is highly involved in numerous community activities and events.