HomeMy WebLinkAboutAEA Board Meeting Feb 2015
BOARD MEETING MINUTES
Wednesday, February 25, 2015
Anchorage, Alaska
1. CALL TO ORDER
Chair Dick called the meeting of the Alaska Energy Authority to order on February 25, 2015 at
10:00 am. A quorum was established.
2. ROLL CALL: BOARD
Members present: Chair Russell Dick (Public Member); Vice-Chair Dana Pruhs (Public
Member); Fred Parady (Acting Commissioner, Department of Commerce, Community and
Economic Development [DCCED]); Wilson Hughes (Public Member); Crystal Nygard (Public
Member); and Gary Wilken (Public Member).
3. ROLL CALL: STAFF, PUBLIC
Staff present: Sara Fisher-Goad (AEA Executive Director); Bryan Carey, Emily Ford, Jennifer
Haldane, Daniel Hertrich, Michael Lamb, Sandra Moller, Doug Ott, Sean Skaling, Teri Webster,
(AEA); and Mary Lynn Macsalka (Department of Law);
Others present: Mark Slaughter (CIE); Mark Dalton (HDR); James McConnell (McConnell and
Associates); Alan Bailey (Petroleum News); Becky Long (Susitna River Coalition-phone);
Sunny Morrison (Accu-Type Depositions).
4. AGENDA APPROVAL
The agenda was approved.
5. PRIOR MINUTES - Dec. 16, 2014; Jan. 14, 2015
MOTION: A motion was made by Vice-Chair Pruhs to adopt the minutes of December 16,
2014 and January 14, 2015. Motion seconded by Commissioner Parady.
Mr. Wilken asked if it has been determined when and how the maintenance plans for rural
Alaska, referenced in the January minutes under Item 8, will be presented to the Board. Ms.
Fisher-Goad informed she will get additional technical assistance and information and formalize
a report to the Board. Vice-Chair Pruhs suggested a third-party service provider could complete
the maintenance based on a contract.
Motion passed.
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February 25, 2015
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6. PUBLIC COMMENTS
Becky Long of the Susitna River Coalition noted she is an active stakeholder in the Susitna dam
licensing process. Ms. Long expressed her frustration with AEA actively promoting the Susitna
dam at forums and legislative hearing after Governor Walker issued an Executive Order putting
the Susitna dam on hold until the state could rationally and logically discuss and evaluate the
project stability and state's best interests.
Ms. Long requested an explanation as to why AEA's recent February 19th presentation to the
Senate Finance Committee stated $100 million would be needed to finish the prelicensing stage
of the licensing process, when it was stated in AEA's FY 2015 budget, reference number 56220,
and at the December 14th Board meeting that it would take over $317 million to finish the
prelicensing stage. Ms. Long asked to know which parts of the process were cut in order to
decrease the amount of dollars by 2/3.
Ms. Long does not believe AEA should promote, as fact, which half the dam construction costs
will be paid through a low interest federal loan from the Rural Utility Service (RUS). She noted
there is no guarantee this is realistic and cited Senator Lisa Murkowski expressing her doubts the
project would receive RUS funds because of significant associated hurdles.
Ms. Long stated the project has a total of $33.5 million of unencumbered and encumbered funds.
She recommended these monies be used for the gas line project or village electrical project. Ms.
Long requested the Board's careful consideration of this project and believes AEA's facts are all
too convenient in promoting the project.
Chair Dick informed Ms. Long's written comments have been forwarded to the Board and to the
Executive Director, and will be responded to accordingly.
7. NEW BUSINESS
7A. Hydroelectric program overview
Ms. Fisher-Goad introduced Mr. Skaling, who provided an overview of the hydroelectric
program. Mr. Skaling stated hydroelectric generates more energy than any other renewable
energy source in Alaska. It is a stable renewable energy source and can be set up in multiple
ways to carry the whole community load, to supplement diesel, gas, wind, or as a base load. It
has a very long, useful life and is a mature technology.
The challenges include being expensive and taking a long time to develop. The types of
hydroelectric used in Alaska include conventional dam, lake tap, and run of river. The AEA
hydroelectric program prioritizes helping communities identify potential economical
hydroelectric projects. The program provides technical assistance to those communities. The
program effectively manages the Renewable Energy Fund (REF) grants and conducts
evaluations of new applications. The program supports Alaska's goal of 50 percent renewable
energy by 2025. The current status is roughly 24 percent of all electricity generated in Alaska
comes from hydroelectric sources.
The funding sources for the hydroelectric program include REF grants for projects, US Army
Corps of Engineer matching 50/50 funds with the state to identify possible rural hydro projects,
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February 25, 2015
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USDA rural energy grants and loans, tribal energy grants, and other potential future support from
US Department of Energy (DOE).
Mr. Skaling showed a listing of hydroelectric program resources, including staff, memberships
and boards. He explained the DOE's national hydropower long-term vision of attaining
significant growth of hydro. Mr. Skaling provided a handout listing Alaska's current
hydroelectric projects, new projects under construction, and proposed projects.
Mr. Hughes asked if Alaska's goal to be 50 percent renewable energy by 2025 is realistic, what
steps are being implemented, and could this goal be reached without the Susitna-Watana project.
Ms. Fisher-Goad noted the Railbelt has approximately 80 percent of the population and
approximately 80 percent of the generation. A big hydro project would have to occur in the
Railbelt to be able to reach the 50 percent renewable energy goal. She does not believe the goal
will be met by 2025, and it would be difficult to meet the goal without the Susitna-Watana
project. Wind energy resources have been advancing significantly from .3 percent to 3 percent,
but this is not enough to reach the 50 percent renewable goal by 2025.
Mr. Wilken commented he had an extraordinary tour of Bradley Lake Hydro facility last August
and highly recommends the facility tour. He believes this is a wonderful success story for the
state and is even more supportive of the Susitna project because of the tour. Mr. Wilken asked if
Senator Murkowski is in a position to add hydroelectric to renewables, which would enable more
funding and support from the federal government. Ms. Fisher-Goad believes Senator
Murkowski's position is very important to Alaska for energy development. The concept of hydro
as a renewable is evolving, because there are a lot of programs that do consider hydro as an
eligible renewable energy source.
Mr. Wilken asked if Alaska would benefit if the hydroelectric renewable energy definition was
changed. Ms. Fisher-Goad noted Alaska recognizes hydroelectric as a renewable energy source
and it would be helpful if hydroelectric was recognized nationwide as a renewable energy
source.
Mr. Wilken recommended providing Senator Murkowski with a letter or a resolution, after the
legislative session, which would set forth the benefit of adding hydroelectric to the renewable
resource menu. Ms. Fisher-Goad agreed to work on that effort. She informed AEA has
participated in discussions with the Governor's Office and Senator Murkowski's Office regarding
energy projects and what could be helpful to Alaska in its priority of energy development. Ms.
Fisher-Goad noted hydro projects, including Susitna-Watana, are eligible for RUS financing.
Ms. Nygard stated there seems to be a national priority to understand global climate issues. She
requested further explanation regarding the technical assistance of cold climate guidance and
data and what kinds of opportunities this may bring to Alaska. Mr. Skaling explained the cold
climate guidance is mainly to assist northern communities to successfully develop and operate
small hydro projects in cold climates.
Chair Dick requested an update from Ms. Fisher-Goad regarding the suggestion by Mr. Wilken
at the last meeting to reaffirm the Board's support of the Susitna-Watana project and to provide
this to the Governor and legislators. Ms. Fisher-Goad believes a reaffirmation of the Susitna-
Watana project would be useful. She noted AEA met recently with the Senate Finance