Seven States Team Doubles in Size in First Year as Independent Organization
January 27, 2022

Over the past two months, Seven States Power Corporation has welcomed three new team members, doubling its size over the past year to better support and serve its member-owners, the 153 local power companies in the Tennessee Valley. Lance Irwin, Marleen Hamilton, and Joe Knox join the organization less than one year after Seven States launched as an independent organization, now growing the team to seven who will support member technology projects.

“We could not be more excited to welcome Lance, Marleen, and Joe to our growing team,” said Betsey Kirk McCall, President and CEO of Seven States Power Corporation. “As we have defined our brand and built out a portfolio of projects over the past year, we have been blown away by the need for our services. The substantial growth we are experiencing affirms the decision our board made less than a year ago to launch Seven States as an independent organization. By growing our team, Seven States will be better positioned to support the number of projects across the Valley as we continue to serve as the ‘easy button’ for our member-owners.”

Lance Irwin will serve as Vice President of Research and Portfolio Optimization. He joins Seven States from the Electric Power Board (EPB) of Chattanooga, where he most recently served as Director of Energy Solutions Technology. After graduating from the University of Tennessee, Knoxville, with a degree in electrical and computer engineering, Irwin began his career at EPB as Engineer and Meter Department Manager before ultimately becoming the Director of Global Utility and Renewables Market Strategy at Schneider Electric, a multinational company providing energy and automation digital solutions. After a six year stint with Schneider, Irwin returned to the electric utility industry and EPB in 2018.

“Through my role at EPB, I was able to work firsthand with Seven States and am excited about the role the cooperative is playing as we move the Tennessee Valley forward,” said Lance Irwin, Vice President of Research and Portfolio Optimization. “I am eager to get to work.”

Marleen Hamilton will serve as Director of Finance and Accounting. With more than 26 years of corporate accounting experience with both for profit and not for profit organizations, Hamilton is uniquely positioned to lead finance efforts for Seven States. Most recently, she oversaw day-to-day operations for 19 separate entities, with experience in budgeting, cash management, compliance, accounts payable, accounts receivable, balance sheet reconciliations, and audits.

“I could not be more excited to join the Seven States team during this time of explosive growth,” said Marleen Hamilton, Director of Finance and Accounting. “The energy and excitement around the innovative work being done here is palpable, and I look forward to helping the team fulfill its mission as we continue to best serve our member-owners across the Tennessee Valley.”

Licensed professional engineer Joe Knox joins Seven States as Director of Technology Deployment from Knox Consulting Services, a consulting business he started in 2015 to provide technical services to a wide range of clients. His extensive engineering and project management experience will be invaluable as Seven States continues to partner with local power companies to meet the growing demand for technology in the Valley.

“With my extensive background in electrical systems and vehicle fueling technologies, combined with my engineering experience, I am excited to serve local power companies in the Tennessee Valley and assist the team as we execute on the vision for Seven States,” said Joe Knox, Director of Technology Deployment.

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Jason Reese

By Jessica Bradshaw • July 17, 2026
Jason Reese, General Manager of Shelbyville Power, Water, and Sewer System, leads his LPC with a focus on the evolving technology that strengthens reliability, improves efficiency, and enhances service for his customers. He took a moment to highlight some of the innovation that is truly making a difference across his community. AMI technology has had the greatest impact on Shelbyville Power, Water, and Sewer Systems and our community. Our system converted to AMI meters nearly 14 years ago, and this technology has enabled us to streamline many manual utility processes and improve operational efficiency in our electric and water systems. AMI electric meters with remote disconnect capabilities have enabled us to remotely disconnect and reconnect customers on the collections list, reducing truck rolls, improving operational efficiency, and enhancing employee safety. AMI water meters allow us to identify water leaks much sooner than was previously possible, benefiting both our customers and our efforts to reduce water loss. Our team is also very proud of our recent pilot distribution automation project installed on three circuits, each served by a different substation, which provide power to Shelbyville's two main corridors. Implementing distribution automation on these circuits helps minimize the number of customers affected during outages or the loss of a power source, improving service reliability for the community. Building on its success, our long-term goal is to expand distribution automation across all eighteen circuits and all three substations to further enhance system reliability, resiliency, and service to our customers. As the Valley continues to evolve and change, Jason knows firsthand that Seven States is a trusted industry resource and a valuable partner in helping LPCs navigate the process of implementing new technology projects. In June 2026, we completed our first EV charger project as part of the TN Fast Charge Network, and I cannot say enough good things about how Seven States and Joe Knox helped guide us through that process. These chargers have already been a hit with our community and have also brought in travelers from out of town to our downtown square. Everything from start to finish went as smoothly as it possibly could, and that is due to Seven States.  While technology continues to transform the utility industry every day, Jason believes some aspects of the system will always depend on the knowledgeable workers who keep everything running behind the scenes. Hands-on infrastructure maintenance is one traditional utility practice that I believe will never completely disappear, regardless of how much technology advances. No matter how sophisticated our systems become, maintaining physical infrastructure will always require skilled workers to perform inspections, repairs, and upgrades in the field. Just as the utility industry is built on connections that span across communities, music has a way of bringing people together, even across generations. When asked which celebrity he would most like to meet for dinner, his choice was a musician who has stood the test of time. It would have to be Elvis Presley. As someone who has a love for all genres of music, to be able to sit down and talk with him about his career and experiences from gospel to rock-n-roll would be an absolute thrill!

David Smart

By Jessica Bradshaw • July 17, 2026
As utilities continue evolving to meet changing member expectations, David Smart, President and CEO of West Kentucky Rural Electric Cooperative Corporation (WKRECC), has focused on blending convenience with programs that directly improve quality of life. Smart points to both digital modernization and energy efficiency initiatives as areas where WKRECC has made meaningful strides for its members. One modernization effort that’s impacted our community has been the implementation of a mobile app and other digitized forms that make it easier for members to do business with their cooperative, including drive-thru registration and tablet voting at our annual meeting. Another would be Home Uplift initiatives, home energy audits, cold climate heat pump conversions and other programs we have implemented to improve the standard of living, comfort, and efficiency in our members’ homes.  Innovation at WKRECC has also extended into advanced energy management and distributed energy resources. Smart elaborated on one of the cooperative’s proudest accomplishments involving internally managing demand and system performance. Our team is especially proud of our PowerShift Program, which utilizes our members’ whole home generators and batteries for demand response. The precision and application technology used has allowed us to offset our peak demand successfully. We have built our own DER gateway allowing us to meter, control, and interrogate home generators and inverters, and our own DERMS platform that incorporates an operational load forecast. Even as utilities embrace new technologies and digital tools, Smart believes some longstanding member habits will remain an important part of cooperative culture. Despite all of the technological advances in the utility world, I think many cooperative members will continue to pay their bill in person at one of our offices. Personal interaction and in-office service continue to matter for our members. In an industry focused on infrastructure and technology, Smart recognizes the value of strong communicators and trusted voices who help bring people and communities together. When asked a lighter question about who he’d like to have dinner with, he pointed to a well-known Kentucky figure who brings folks together. If I could have dinner with anyone, I would love to have dinner with the legendary voice of the Wildcats, Cawood Ledford. I think the stories he could tell would be enlightening and fascinating.

Energy Express: Advancing Tennessee's Electric Future

By Jessica Bradshaw • July 1, 2026
The second quarter of 2026 has been a productive period for the Seven States team, with much of the spring and early summer dedicated to engaging utility leaders, elected officials, community stakeholders, and the public to share the vision, progress, and benefits of the Energy Express Project. Members of the Seven States team had the privilege of speaking with leaders from BrightRidge, Memphis Light, Gas and Water (MLGW), and the Nashville Electric Service (NES). These publicly held meetings served as important forums to answer questions, share project milestones, and demonstrate how the Energy Express Project will modernize and strengthen the Valley’s electric infrastructure for decades to come. Led by Seven States, the project will deliver 220MW of battery storage capacity across multiple site locations in partnership with BrightRidge (20MW), MLGW (100MW), and NES (100MW). The project is backed by Seven States’ award of a landmark $439 million zero-interest loan and grant from the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Rural Utilities Service (USDA RUS). A primary objective of the project will be creating a stronger, more flexible electric grid capable of meeting increasing energy demands related to the state's industrial, commercial, and residential sectors. The battery assets will charge during off peak hours and discharge during peak hours to help peak shave, reducing costs and grid strain while providing utilities with greater operational flexibility. Originally envisioned as a utility scale solar project, the initiative will now deploy battery storage as a standalone resource on the distribution system and the assets will be owned and operated by Seven States. The project's outreach efforts have been featured by local media outlets (highlighted below), and a dedicated website has been launched to provide project updates while offering the public an opportunity to submit comments and questions. As we continue advancing the project, we remain grateful for the opportunity to engage with partners across Tennessee and share our progress with the Seven States audience. We look forward to continuing these conversations with utilities, local governments, community organizations, and rate payers as the Energy Express Project moves forward. Together, we are building and energizing the grid of the future. POWERING UP: Chattanooga-based Seven States to build grid batteries with $439M in federal funds BrightRidge, Seven State Power Corporation partnership to bring battery storage to the Tennessee Valley MLGW and Seven States Power form partnership for battery storage MLGW, Seven States make deal to deploy battery storage Energy Express Project to Bring Battery Storage to Greater Nashville Nashville's power grid is about to get a boost. Here's how.
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