Wind Power
By Anne Todd
USDA Rural Development
he expansive utility infrastructure that exists
for most Americans in the lower 48 states is a
luxury that simply isn’t available for Alaskans
living in the remote, rural areas of the state.
The majority of these small communities
aren’t even accessible by road, let alone power lines.
The sheer isolation of such communities, coupled with
Arctic weather conditions, present numerous challenges for
delivery of any type of utility service. The lack of roads and
extreme weather make it difficult to transport materials and
equipment.
Permafrost (permanently frozen subsoil) hampers
construction and makes construction logistics much more
complex. Consequently, due to these unique conditions,
diesel fuel has served as the primary source of electrical
power in rural Alaska because it can be shipped and stored
above ground, even in remote locations and under arctic
conditions.
World’s largest retail service market
The Alaska Village Electric Cooperative (AVEC) —
founded in 1968 and based in Anchorage — provides electric
power to more than 7,500 customers in 53 villages scattered
throughout some of the most remote stretches of rural
Alaska. AVEC’s huge service area is the largest service
territory in the world for a retail power cooperative. It spans
800 miles from Kivalina in the north to Old Harbor on
Kodiak Island in the south. It also stretches 600 miles from
Minto in the east to Gambell on St. Lawrence Island in the
west.
Fuel costs in Alaska are well more than three times greater
than the costs in the lower 48 states. In recent years, those
costs have been rising rapidly. In 2008, the skyrocketing cost
of diesel resulted in a fuel charge for average AVEC
customers of 37 cents per kilowatt-hour.
AVEC operates 48 diesel plants. However, because of
rising diesel costs, in 1999 the cooperative began to develop a
wind-power program that integrates wind into several of its
village diesel power systems. This effort builds upon
experience of previous Alaska wind pioneers Kotzebue
Electric Association and TDX Power. The goal of this
project is to reduce diesel use by 25 percent in 10 years.
AVEC currently owns wind turbines operating in five
communities with connections to three other communities.
In 2008, its turbines, rated at 1,360 kilowatts (kW), had the
highest wind-generating capacity and production of any
utility in the entire state.
AVEC built its first integrated wind-diesel facility in
Selawik, Alaska. That system has four AOC 65-kW turbines
with a generating capacity of 260 kW. The total wind-diesel
generating capacity is 1,647 kW.
Since it was the first such project AVEC had undertaken,
the co-op faced many design and performance challenges.
However, working through and solving those problems
helped the cooperative garner the field experience and
knowledge needed to start other projects and to expand its
wind program, which is now nationally and internationally
recognized.
AVEC developed two highly successful wind farm projects
in Toksook Bay and Kasigluk that reduced fuel costs by 12
cents for customers in the five villages being served by the
project (compared to the average cost paid by other AVEC
customers). Each of these projects employ three wind
turbines that generate as much as 25 percent of the annual
electricity needs for two communities.
These projects involved integration of wind power into
small, isolated diesel grids, operation in sub-zero conditions
and construction in challenging geotechnical and permafrost
conditions.
AVEC also has two Northwind 100 wind turbines in
Savoonga. These turbines, which went into operation last
fall, have a generating capacity of 200 kW. The total winddiesel
generating capacity is 1,870 kW. Hooper Bay has three
Northwind 100 turbines in operation and will be fully
commissioned this year.
Wind offsets rising diesel costs
The more wind generators that AVEC can install, the
more the co-op can reduce fuel costs and diesel consumption
for its customers. AVEC currently has several more projects
under construction, from which the cooperative expects to
obtain similar benefits. For example, AVEC plans to install
seven more Northwind 100 turbines in 2009. Four of these
will be sited in Chevak and three in Gambell.
AVEC also has placed meteorological towers in the
communities of Emmonak, St. Mary’s, Shaktoolik, Marshall
and Old Harbor to assess the quality of wind
resources and determine if these locales can
economically support the generation of wind
power.
Thirty-nine of the 53 villages in AVEC’s service area are
classified as “4+ Wind Regions” (the wind power density
classes range from one to seven).
“AVEC will continue to pursue wind as aggressively as we
can afford to,” says Meera Kohler, the co-op president and
chief executive officer.
A combination of resources is used to fund the projects.
These include AVEC cooperative equity, equity contributions
by entities such as the Coastal Villages Region Fund, grants
from the Rural Utilities Programs of USDA Rural
Development, the Denali Commission and state of Alaska. It
also uses renewable energy credit sales to Native Energy and
the anticipated proceeds from the sale of Clean Renewable
Energy Bonds (CREBs).
Communities and native corporations have helped advance
the projects by providing land and access.
Turbines generate big savings
In 2007, the turbines in Selawik, Kasigluk and Toksook
Bay generated 1.1 million net kilowatt hours (kWh) and
displaced the need for 81,481 gallons of diesel fuel. At an
average cost of $2.75 per gallon (and $3.30 in Selawik),
AVEC saved more than $200,000 in diesel generation costs.
In 2008, the turbines in these three communities
generated more than 1.3 million kWh and displaced 99,191
gallons of diesel. At the 2008 average cost of $4.73 per
gallon, this equates to a savings of $453,000 in dieselgeneration
costs. Including the wind turbines that became
operational in late 2008, AVEC’s total net wind energy
production is more than 1.4 million kWh. Wind power saved
108,057 gallons of diesel and $493,000 in diesel costs.
With results like this, it is not hard to see why AVEC was
selected in 2007 as the Wind Cooperative of the Year. This
honor from the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) — in
partnership with the National Rural Electric Cooperative
Association — recognized AVEC for its leadership and
demonstrated success and innovation in its wind power
program. AVEC is the seventh such recipient of the award.
AVEC was one of six rural member-owned utilities
nominated in 2007.
For more information about AVEC and its renewable
energy initiatives, visit its website at http://www.avec.org.
