Based on research into Sitka’s long-term energy requirements, wind power might be the best option.
Molly Grear and Amy Solana are engineers at Pacific Northwest National Laboratory. The assembly heard their findings on December 13. The federal grant that the United States Department of Energy awarded to Sitka for the study funded the study. Sitka was among a few communities selected nationwide to participate in the ETIPP program. This stands for Energy Transitions Initiative Partnership and aims to increase energy resilience in remote and island communities.
Solana stated that wind, solar, and tidal are all viable options, but that wind is the most expensive and cost-effective in the long-term. This would make it the best option for the city.
She stated that the wind resource is the most powerful resource available. “We evaluated several locations throughout the project. Lucky Chance and Beaver Lake were the best locations for wind production.
Solana stated that it would take the city around four years to build a wind farm, which could produce up to 24 megawatts. Although solar energy is quicker to install, the payoff would be less because it would only be useful during the summer months on large, south-facing rooftops.
She said that there is potential to source wave or tidal power, which could prove more efficient than solar energy in winter but be smaller than a wind power plant.
Geothermal energy can also be obtained from Goddard Hot Springs. This was first investigated in the 1980s as an energy source.
Solana stated, “And it was found that it looked promising, but actually [an] additional detailed investigation is required to characterize and understand the capacity of the resource.” “And, if that’s possible, drilling a well will allow us to see the heat flow below the surface.
Why bother looking into it when Sitka still has to pay off its multi-million dollar hydroelectric dam construction? In the next five to ten years, the city expects more electric customers will join the grid. The construction of the new hospital at the SEARHC campus, and the continued migration to electric cars will mean that the city will either have to rely on diesel generation more to supplement the energy coming from the dam or look for an alternative source.
Solana stated, “Electrification continues with electric cars and homes and buildings, switching fossil fuel heating to heat pump,” “that’s an enormous growth and load that really requires some planning now.”
In January, the full ETIPP report is due to be published. View Solana and Grear’s presentation slides by clicking here.
