KNOXVILLE, Tenn., July 13, 2011 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Richard Howorth was sworn in Wednesday, July 13, in Oxford, Miss., to serve a five-year term on the TVA board of directors.

(Logo: http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20100304/TVALOGO)

Howorth was confirmed unanimously by the U.S. Senate on Thursday, June 30, taking the seat of former board member Howard Thrailkill whose term expired in May 2010.  He was sworn in at the Lafayette County Courthouse by his brother, the Honorable Andrew K. Howorth, circuit court judge of the Third Circuit Court District in Mississippi.

"I am honored to have been nominated to this post by the president and confirmed by the U.S. Senate," said Howorth. "As one who has had a lifelong interest and stake in the progress of the region, I know that TVA is a vitally important entity, and I look forward to working with the TVA board."

Director Howorth lives in Oxford, Miss., where he served two terms as mayor of Oxford from 2001 to 2009 and is the founder and owner of Square Books, a leading independent bookstore in Oxford.

During his tenure as mayor, he was chairman of the authority overseeing the Oxford Electric Department. He served eight years as a director and officer of the North Mississippi Industrial Development Association, an economic development consortium comprised of utility directors and mayors of cities in 29 counties in the TVA service territory. Howorth is a former chairman of the American Booksellers Association, the nation's trade association of independent bookstores.

Howorth graduated from the University of Mississippi. His term expires May 18, 2015.

He joins TVA Board Chairman Denny Bottorff, and members Marilyn Brown, Mike Duncan, Tom Gilliland, William Graves, Barbara Haskew, Neil McBride and Bill Sansom.  

The Tennessee Valley Authority, a corporation owned by the U.S. government, provides electricity for utility and business customers in most of Tennessee and parts of Alabama, Mississippi, Kentucky, Georgia, North Carolina and Virginia – an area of 80,000 square miles with a population of 9 million. TVA operates 29 hydroelectric dams, 11 coal-fired power plants, three nuclear plants and 11 natural gas-fired power facilities that can produce about 34,000 megawatts of electricity, delivered over 16,000 miles of high-voltage power lines. TVA also provides flood control, navigation, land management and recreation for the Tennessee River system and works with local utilities and state and local governments to promote economic development across the region. TVA, which makes no profits and receives no taxpayer money, is funded by sales of electricity to its customers. Electricity prices in TVA's service territory are below the national average.

SOURCE Tennessee Valley Authority