Energy Northwest
Encyclopedia
Energy Northwest is a United States public power joint operating agency formed by State law in 1957 to produce at-cost power for Northwest utilities. Headquartered in Richland, Washington
, the WPPSS became commonly knowns as "Whoops"
before being renamed Energy Northwest in November 1998. Agency membership includes 28 public power utilities, including 23 of the State’s 24 public utility district
s.
Energy Northwest is governed by two boards: an executive board and a board of directors. The executive board has 11 members: five representatives from the board of directors, three gubernatorial appointees and three public representatives selected by the board of directors. The board of directors includes a representative from each member utility.
The consortium’s solar, hydro, wind and nuclear projects deliver nearly 1,300 megawatts of electricity to the Northwest power grid. Current power projects include White Bluffs Solar Station, Packwood Lake Hydroelectric Project, Nine Canyon Wind Project and Columbia Generating Station
nuclear power plant
.
Energy Northwest functions as a municipal corporation
, similar to a town or city. That legal status allows the agency to issue public bonds to raise the financial capital necessary to build additional power generating and other public utility facilities.
New power generating facilities currently under consideration include additional wind power
sites throughout Washington; a 320-megawatt natural gas plant in Kalama, Washington
; a carbonless energy park in eastern Washington; and three solar projects in Oregon
at 5-megawatts each. The agency also provides a variety of business services in the energy, power generation and technical fields, including a range of project management and facility operations and maintenance services.
In April 2006, Energy Northwest achieved ISO 14001:2004 registration, formalizing its environment stewardship program.
On Jan. 31, 1957, the state legislature created the Washington Public Power Supply System, now known as Energy Northwest, as a joint operating agency to share the risks and rewards of building and operating electrical generating facilities. The power was to be provided, at the cost of production, to the ratepayers of those public utilities participating in the agency’s new projects.
The first generating source to be developed was the Packwood Lake Hydroelectric Project, located in Lewis County, Washington State approximately 20 miles south of Mount Rainier. The 27.5 megawatt project was designed to produce electricity while protecting the natural environment. Packwood continues to produce power into its fifth decade of operation. In February 2008, Energy Northwest submitted an application to renew the project’s operating license for an additional 50 years to the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission
. The agency expects to receive a license renewal for the project in 2010.
In September 1962, Congress passed and President John F. Kennedy
signed a bill authorizing construction of a new dual-purpose nuclear reactor (the N Reactor) on the Hanford nuclear reservation. It was designed to produce both weapons-grade plutonium and steam to power turbine generators – thus its designation as a dual-purpose reactor. With support from U.S. Senator Henry “Scoop” Jackson, the agency made a successful pitch to be the non-federal operator of the steam generator half of the project. President Kennedy presided over the groundbreaking in September 1963. Commercial operation of the 860-megawatt Hanford Generating Project began in April 1966.
For the agency, under the regionally developed Hydro-Thermal Power Program, the 1970s brought the challenge of attempting to simultaneously construct multiple nuclear power plants. Of the five nuclear power projects started, only one – WNP-2, now known as Columbia Generating Station, was completed. A combination of management failures, a depressed economy, soaring interest rates and material costs, labor unrest, ratepayer activism and over estimation of electricity demand by forecasters was more than the effort could withstand. The other plants were eventually terminated.
In 1983, it became infamous for defaulting on $2.25 billion USD worth of bonds after construction on two of its nuclear power plants, WNP-4 and 5, was halted. The default remains the largest municipal bond default in the history of the United States. The WPPSS acquired the nickname "Whoops" in the media.
Fuel loading at Columbia Generating Station began on Dec. 25, 1983, and proceeded at a rate of 50 fuel assemblies per day. The process was completed Jan. 12, 1984, and Columbia was declared in commercial operation Dec. 13, 1984. On Jan 19, 2010, Energy Northwest submitted an application to the Nuclear Regulatory Commission for a 20-year license renewal of Columbia Generating Station. The current license will expire near the end of 2023. License renewal is a NRC process that takes approximately 2½ years from the application submittal date.
The agency built and continues to operate White Bluffs Solar Station demonstration project, which was dedicated in May 2002. The low-maintenance, environmentally friendly project uses 242 photovoltaic panels to reach a production capacity of 38.7 kilowatts DC.
Energy Northwest next built and continues to operate the region’s first public power wind project – Nine Canyon Wind Project. It was dedicated in October 2002, with a second phase going online in December 2003, and the third and final phase in service in May 2008, bringing the total capacity to 95.9 megawatts.
Richland, Washington
Richland is a city in Benton County in the southeastern part of the U.S. state of Washington, at the confluence of the Yakima and the Columbia Rivers. As of the 2010 census, the city population was 48,058. April 1, 2011 estimates from the Washington State Office of Financial Management put the...
, the WPPSS became commonly knowns as "Whoops"
before being renamed Energy Northwest in November 1998. Agency membership includes 28 public power utilities, including 23 of the State’s 24 public utility district
Public utility district
In the United States, a public utility district is a special-purpose district or other governmental jurisdiction that provides public utilities to the residents of that district.PUDs are created by a local government body, such as a city, county, or...
s.
Energy Northwest is governed by two boards: an executive board and a board of directors. The executive board has 11 members: five representatives from the board of directors, three gubernatorial appointees and three public representatives selected by the board of directors. The board of directors includes a representative from each member utility.
The consortium’s solar, hydro, wind and nuclear projects deliver nearly 1,300 megawatts of electricity to the Northwest power grid. Current power projects include White Bluffs Solar Station, Packwood Lake Hydroelectric Project, Nine Canyon Wind Project and Columbia Generating Station
Columbia Generating Station
The Columbia Generating Station, is a nuclear power station located on the United States Department of Energy Hanford Site, 12 miles NW of Richland, Washington. Its site covers 1,089 acres of Benton County, Washington....
nuclear power plant
Nuclear power plant
A nuclear power plant is a thermal power station in which the heat source is one or more nuclear reactors. As in a conventional thermal power station the heat is used to generate steam which drives a steam turbine connected to a generator which produces electricity.Nuclear power plants are usually...
.
Energy Northwest functions as a municipal corporation
Municipal corporation
A municipal corporation is the legal term for a local governing body, including cities, counties, towns, townships, charter townships, villages, and boroughs. Municipal incorporation occurs when such municipalities become self-governing entities under the laws of the state or province in which...
, similar to a town or city. That legal status allows the agency to issue public bonds to raise the financial capital necessary to build additional power generating and other public utility facilities.
New power generating facilities currently under consideration include additional wind power
Wind power
Wind power is the conversion of wind energy into a useful form of energy, such as using wind turbines to make electricity, windmills for mechanical power, windpumps for water pumping or drainage, or sails to propel ships....
sites throughout Washington; a 320-megawatt natural gas plant in Kalama, Washington
Kalama, Washington
Kalama is a city in Cowlitz County, Washington, United States. It is part of the 'Longview, Washington Metropolitan Statistical Area'. The population was 2,344 at the 2010 census.-History:...
; a carbonless energy park in eastern Washington; and three solar projects in Oregon
Oregon
Oregon is a state in the Pacific Northwest region of the United States. It is located on the Pacific coast, with Washington to the north, California to the south, Nevada on the southeast and Idaho to the east. The Columbia and Snake rivers delineate much of Oregon's northern and eastern...
at 5-megawatts each. The agency also provides a variety of business services in the energy, power generation and technical fields, including a range of project management and facility operations and maintenance services.
In April 2006, Energy Northwest achieved ISO 14001:2004 registration, formalizing its environment stewardship program.
History
The public power movement gained prominence in the 1920s and 1930s under the leadership of the Washington State Grange, a non-partisan, grassroots advocacy group for rural citizens with both legislative programs and community activities. Public utility districts were created to provide reliable, low-cost power for the growing state.On Jan. 31, 1957, the state legislature created the Washington Public Power Supply System, now known as Energy Northwest, as a joint operating agency to share the risks and rewards of building and operating electrical generating facilities. The power was to be provided, at the cost of production, to the ratepayers of those public utilities participating in the agency’s new projects.
The first generating source to be developed was the Packwood Lake Hydroelectric Project, located in Lewis County, Washington State approximately 20 miles south of Mount Rainier. The 27.5 megawatt project was designed to produce electricity while protecting the natural environment. Packwood continues to produce power into its fifth decade of operation. In February 2008, Energy Northwest submitted an application to renew the project’s operating license for an additional 50 years to the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission
Federal Energy Regulatory Commission
The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission is the United States federal agency with jurisdiction over interstate electricity sales, wholesale electric rates, hydroelectric licensing, natural gas pricing, and oil pipeline rates...
. The agency expects to receive a license renewal for the project in 2010.
In September 1962, Congress passed and President John F. Kennedy
John F. Kennedy
John Fitzgerald "Jack" Kennedy , often referred to by his initials JFK, was the 35th President of the United States, serving from 1961 until his assassination in 1963....
signed a bill authorizing construction of a new dual-purpose nuclear reactor (the N Reactor) on the Hanford nuclear reservation. It was designed to produce both weapons-grade plutonium and steam to power turbine generators – thus its designation as a dual-purpose reactor. With support from U.S. Senator Henry “Scoop” Jackson, the agency made a successful pitch to be the non-federal operator of the steam generator half of the project. President Kennedy presided over the groundbreaking in September 1963. Commercial operation of the 860-megawatt Hanford Generating Project began in April 1966.
For the agency, under the regionally developed Hydro-Thermal Power Program, the 1970s brought the challenge of attempting to simultaneously construct multiple nuclear power plants. Of the five nuclear power projects started, only one – WNP-2, now known as Columbia Generating Station, was completed. A combination of management failures, a depressed economy, soaring interest rates and material costs, labor unrest, ratepayer activism and over estimation of electricity demand by forecasters was more than the effort could withstand. The other plants were eventually terminated.
In 1983, it became infamous for defaulting on $2.25 billion USD worth of bonds after construction on two of its nuclear power plants, WNP-4 and 5, was halted. The default remains the largest municipal bond default in the history of the United States. The WPPSS acquired the nickname "Whoops" in the media.
Fuel loading at Columbia Generating Station began on Dec. 25, 1983, and proceeded at a rate of 50 fuel assemblies per day. The process was completed Jan. 12, 1984, and Columbia was declared in commercial operation Dec. 13, 1984. On Jan 19, 2010, Energy Northwest submitted an application to the Nuclear Regulatory Commission for a 20-year license renewal of Columbia Generating Station. The current license will expire near the end of 2023. License renewal is a NRC process that takes approximately 2½ years from the application submittal date.
The agency built and continues to operate White Bluffs Solar Station demonstration project, which was dedicated in May 2002. The low-maintenance, environmentally friendly project uses 242 photovoltaic panels to reach a production capacity of 38.7 kilowatts DC.
Energy Northwest next built and continues to operate the region’s first public power wind project – Nine Canyon Wind Project. It was dedicated in October 2002, with a second phase going online in December 2003, and the third and final phase in service in May 2008, bringing the total capacity to 95.9 megawatts.
Members
- Asotin County PUD
- Benton County PUD
- Centralia City Light
- Chelan County PUD
- City of Port Angeles
- City of Richland
- Clallam County PUD
- Clark Public Utilities
- Cowlitz County PUD
- Ferry County PUD
- Franklin County PUD
- Grant County PUD
- Grays Harbor County PUD
- Jefferson County PUD
- Kittitas County PUD
- Klickitat County PUD
- Lewis County PUD
- Mason County PUD 1
- Mason County PUD 3
- Okanogan County PUD
- Pacific County PUD 2
- Pend Oreille PUD
- Seattle City LightSeattle City LightSeattle City Light is the public utility providing electrical power to Seattle, Washington and parts of its metropolitan area, including all of Shoreline and Lake Forest Park and parts of unincorporated King County, Burien, Normandy Park, Seatac, Renton, and Tukwila...
- Skamania County PUD
- Snohomish County PUD
- Tacoma Public UtilitiesTacoma Public UtilitiesTacoma Public Utilities is the public utility service for Tacoma, Washington. It was formed in 1893, and is made up of Tacoma Power, Tacoma Water, Tacoma Rail, and the Click! Network television cable service. Tacoma Public Utilities is the largest department in Tacoma City government, employing...
- Wahkiakum County PUD
- Whatcom County PUD
See also
- Nuclear Implosions: The Rise and Fall of the Washington Public Power Supply SystemNuclear Implosions: The Rise and Fall of the Washington Public Power Supply SystemNuclear Implosions: The Rise and Fall of the Washington Public Power Supply System is a 2008 book by Daniel Pope, a history professor at the University of Oregon, which traces the history of the Washington Public Power Supply System, a public agency which undertook to build five large nuclear power...
- WPPSS history
External links
- Energy Northwest Site
- A Northwest distaste for nuclear power
- Investomedia
- The Cato Institute
- Seattle P-I article 1986-10-21
- LA Times article 1987-10-09
- Wilma, David. Washington Public Power Supply System (WPPSS). History Link. July 10, 2003. Retrieved May 27, 2006.