Sevier County Electric System

 

Sevier County Electric System had its beginning in 1912, when it was known as Sevierville Light & Power Company owned by Walker Milling & Produce Company. Its source of power was a hydro-plant located on the west prong of the Little Pigeon River. If the water conditions were at their best, the plant would produce approximately 95 kW of power — about enough power to supply six all-electric homes. In 1917, a steam plant with a capacity of 150 kW was built on Bruce Street to help furnish more power.

From these humble beginnings, SCES has grown from a small company of three employees serving 700 customers to a much larger operation of 100 employees serving over 55,000 customers and counting. In 1939, it would have been impossible to foresee this kind of growth in our system and in our communities.

Our location next to the Great Smoky Mountains National Park, which serves more than 10 million visitors each year, has transformed rural Sevier County into a thriving tourist destination. SCES is now the 15th largest distributor of TVA electricity in the seven-state service territory and the 52nd largest public power utility in the country. We can attribute much of our system growth to the GSMNP, along with the tireless efforts and cooperation of the different communities in our county.

As a public power utility, we are locally owned and operated for the good of our communities. Sevier County is an ever-growing and changing landscape, but our focus continues to remain on meeting the needs of our customers by providing safe, reliable electricity at the lowest possible cost.