Your PUD
PUD News Line
10/14/2009
Tour the Chelan River Project
You're invited to tour and celebrate completion of the Chelan River Project - a just-completed $16 million project that that will provide year-round water flow from the Chelan Dam to restore the natural character of the Chelan River and add nearly four acres of fish habitat in the lower portion of the river after it emerges from the steep Chelan Gorge.
The free, self-guided tours run from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. on Saturday, Oct. 17, in Chelan and Chelan Falls. Interpretive signs at each of four stops will provide information, and PUD staff will be available to answer questions. The self-guided tours are designed to let you decide what to view and in what order.
Download a map of the tour stops.
Chelan County PUD expecting another stressed budget year in 2010
Although the price of wholesale surplus power is expected to improve slightly next year, Chelan County PUD still expects to have a stressed year financially that could result in another decline for the bottom line in 2010. The PUD expects to remain in “preservation mode,” holding the line tightly on costs and delaying any spending that can wait a few years.
Commissioners were told Sept. 28, that it’s too early to tell whether another surcharge or rate increase will be requested. There are too many unknowns at this point. While not knowing how much snow will accumulate in the mountains and what the price of wholesale power will be next year, first estimates show a wide range of possible wholesale revenues between $69 million and $34 million. That translates to a potential increase in net assets for the PUD’s Utility Services of $10 million all the way to a loss of $27 million. The decline in net assets this year is forecast to be $18 million to $20 million.
Work at Rock Island Dam gives new life to old generators
Chelan County PUD employees have finished rehabilitating the first of the four original units at Rock Island Dam to ensure continued production of clean, renewable hydropower for several more decades. This is the first time District crews have done this type of work so extensively, which resulted in administrative contract savings and provided valuable training for employees who will maintain the units, said Tom Treat, Rock Island Dam manager.
Work started on Unit B3 in March 2009, and the turbine-generator was back producing electricity on Sept. 17. The job involved overhauling the turbine (the part spun by water) and modernizing the generator (the part that creates the electricity) at a cost of about $6.7 million.
SNAP program gets new focus
Now in its ninth year, the Sustainable Natural Alternative Power program is getting new attention at the PUD with more assistance for owners and a new emphasis on support from customers.
SNAP started in 2001 as an award-winning “green” program. In the 2008-2009 production year, its 45 producers generated 117,000 kilowatt hours of electricity and received just over $26,000 in payments that came from customer contributions.
Susan Gillin, customer service administrator, now leads the project for the PUD and has been working with the 45 SNAP producers to revitalize the program. She has helped find expertise and, in some cases, funding to make repairs to systems which are installed mostly at schools and non-profit organizations. She’s hoping to also spur more customers to support SNAP by paying a little extra on their electric bills for alternative power. “As little as a dollar a month will help,” Gillin said.