SUBSCRIBE TO TMCnet
TMCnet - World's Largest Communications and Technology Community

CHANNEL BY TOPICS


QUICK LINKS




Soule Hydro Proposes Transmission Line from Alaska to Canada
Green Technology Featured Articles
August 22, 2013

Soule Hydro Proposes Transmission Line from Alaska to Canada

By Cheryl Kaften
TMCnet Contributor

In a move aimed at expanding its market, Soule Hydro, LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Alaska Power & Telephone, has filed an application with the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) to construct and operate the first-ever hydroelectric transmission lineto cross the international border from Southeast Alaska to British Columbia, Canada.


In order for the project to go forward, the DOE’s Office of Electricity Delivery and Energy Reliability must issue what is known as a Presidential Permit, which is required in all cases when electrical energy is to be distributed from the United States to another nation.

The new U.S.-Canada transmission line would be capable of carrying up to 77.4 megawatts (MW) of power. The Alaskan portion of the project would be an eight-mile-long, 138 kilovolt (kV) HVAC 3-phasesubmarine cable that would be laid on the floor of Portland Canal before crossing the International Boundary off the community of Hyder, Alaska; where it would extend another two miles to land at Stewart, B.C. Arrow Dock. It would occupy federal land administered by the Ketchikan-Misty Fjords Ranger District of the U.S. Forest Service.

The transmission line eventually would transition to overhead and terminate at the BC Hydro Stewart Substation approximately 2.5 miles from the cable landing. Soule Hydro represents that the project’s precise final route would be subject to a number of factors, including resource issues, permitting, land acquisition, and stakeholder agreement.

“By working closely with regional business, industry partners and research organizations such as the Alaska Center for Energy and Power, AP&T shares a larger vision of what is possible for the future of Alaska’s vast stranded renewable energy resources,” states Robert Grimm, president of Alaska Power & Telephone Company. “We are convinced the development of a new renewable energy industry, coupled with a resurgence of Alaska’s timber, mineral, fisheries and petroleum market segments, will greatly benefit those in need of these resources, while creating economic well-being for Alaskans.” 

The application, filed last March 18, has been posted in the Federal Register for comments, protests, or motions to intervene, which must be submitted on or before August 29. They should be addressed to: Brian Mills, Office of Electricity Delivery and Energy Reliability (OE–20), U.S. Department of Energy, 1000 Independence Avenue SW, Washington, DC 20585.

Snapshot: Hydro in the USA

Today, hydropower in Alaska provides 24 percent of statewide electrical energy, with 423 megawatts (MW) of installed power, based on data from the Alaska Center for Energy and Power. Indeed, with 96 powered and non-powered dams, hydro represents 98.7 percent of renewable energy developed in the state.

Major developers include the State of Alaska and public and privately owned utilities. Alaska Power & Telephone claims to have more hydroelectric projects on-line, under construction and in the planning stages than any other investor-owned utility in Alaska.

Nationwide, in 2012, hydropower provided the majority of the nation’s renewable electricity, with 100,000 MW of installed capacity from coast to coast. The industry employs approximately 300,000 workers and is fed by a supply chain of more than 2,500 companies.

According to the National Hydropower Association, a Washington, DC-based trade group, the states that lead the nation in hydropower generation are (in order of production capacity): Washington, Oregon, New York, California, Alabama, Idaho, Tennessee, Montana, Arizona, and North Carolina.

Boosting Development

On August 9, U.S. President Barack Obama signed into law two bills aimed at boosting development of hydropower. Both measures—H.R. 26, the Hydropower Regulatory Efficiency Act, and H.R. 678 ,the Bureau of Reclamation Small Conduit Hydropower Development and Rural Jobs Act—were cleared unanimously by the Senate before its members adjourned for August recess. T

The House passed both bills earlier this year with overwhelming bipartisan support. They represent the first significant pieces of energy legislation to come out of Congress since the 2009 American Recovery and Reinvestment Act.

H.R. 267 promotes the development of small hydropower and conduit projects; and aims to shorten regulatory timeframes of certain other low-impact hydropower projects, such as adding power generation to the nation’s existing non-powered dams and closed-loop pumped storage.

H.R. 678 authorizes small hydropower development at existing Bureau of Reclamation-owned canals, pipelines, aqueducts, and other manmade waterways. Such development could provide enough power for 30,000 American homes with no environmental impact.

Estimates done by Navigant Consulting indicate that 60,000 MW of hydropower could be added with the right policies in place, while creating 1.4 million cumulative jobs. This legislation is designed to unlock some of that tremendous potential.

“Hydropower is America’s leading renewable, providing low-cost, reliable electricity to millions of American families,” said Linda Church Ciocci, executive director of the National Hydropower Association. “These bills are an excellent step to unlocking the tens of thousands of megawatts of untapped hydropower capacity that can provide millions of Americans greater access to affordable, reliable electricity. I applaud President Obama for signing them into law and for his continued support of hydropower’s role in addressing our energy, environmental, and economic challenges.”




Edited by Rachel Ramsey


Green Technology Related Articles






Technology Marketing Corporation

2 Trap Falls Road Suite 106, Shelton, CT 06484 USA
Ph: +1-203-852-6800, 800-243-6002

General comments: [email protected].
Comments about this site: [email protected].

STAY CURRENT YOUR WAY

© 2024 Technology Marketing Corporation. All rights reserved | Privacy Policy