SYSTEM DESCRIPTION

KPU owns and operates Ketchikan Lakes Hydro Project, and Beaver Falls Hydro Project (which includes Silvis Lakes).  KPU operates Swan Lake Hydro Project, which is owned by the Southeast Alaska Power Agency (SEAPA).  Ketchikan also receives energy via SEAPA's recently completed Swan-Tyee Intertie transmission line, which now connects the community to Wrangell and Petersburg's electrical grids.

Ketchikan's total hydro capacity is approximately 34 megawatts (MW), including both KPU and SEAPA-owned projects.  KPU maintains four peaking/standby diesel generators at Bailey Powerhouse totaling 24MW, and two other diesel generators at the North Point Higgins Substation totalling 3.2MW.  The diesel generators provide power to the community in times of low reservoir levels, hydro maintenance periods, and for emergency use during outages.

KPU's infrastructure includes seven distribution substations, 30-miles of 34.5kV sub-transmission lines, and nearly 100-miles of 12.47kV distribution lines, and nearly 7,700 meters.

Future hydro projects on the horizon include KPU's Whitman Lake (4.6MW), the Metlakatla Intertie (5MW), and Cape Fox/AP&T's Mahoney Lake (9MW).  KPU is also participating with other regional utilities to develop an "integrated resource plan" to facility growth and development throughout the greater Southeast Alaska region.