HomeMy WebLinkAboutBulk Fuel Upgrade Program Fact Sheet 04-2018-BALASKA ENERGY AUTHORITY
WWW.AKENERGYAUTHORITY.ORG
REDUCING THE COST
OF ENERGY IN ALASKA
FOR MORE INFO
CONTACT:
David Lockard
Lead Engineer
DLOCKARD@AIDEA.ORG
907.771.3062
QUICK FACTS
BULK FUEL UPGRADE PROGRAM
117 bulk fuel
projects
completed
since 2000
(AEA & AVEC)
~42 Bulk Fuel
Upgrade
projects
remaining
14 projects
currently in
design or
construction
CURRENT STATUS
AEA has four Bulk Fuel Upgrade projects in construction or pre-construction:
•The City of Kasaan is designing a small bulk fuel facility with AEA funding.
•AEA has contracted for construction of a bulk fuel facility in Kipnuk in 2017-18. The tanks
and other equipment were delivered to the site in the summer of 2017. The contractor
is on-site and driving pile as of spring 2018.
•AEA is developing a solicitation for bulk fuel facility construction in Tatitlek.
•AVEC has contracted for construction of a community bulk fuel facility in Holy Cross in
summer 2018.
AEA is planning a number of bulk fuel repair and maintenance projects for the summer of
2018.
Pending State Fire Marshal approval, AEA will contract for repair of the bulk fuel facility
in Beaver.
Pending State Fire Marshal approval, AEA will contract for repair of the bulk fuel facility
in Chalkyitsik
AEA will perform minor repairs at four different bulk fuel facilities based on a priority list
to be determined in collaboration with the Denali Commission.
PROGRAM OVERVIEW
Under 3 AAC 108.100 –130 the Alaska Energy Authority’s Bulk Fuel Upgrade (BFU) program
may provide financial assistance and technical assistance including construction
management and training to eligible recipients.
Rural Alaska is energized primarily by liquid fuels: diesel for power generation and heating,
and gasoline for transportation. Rural villages are located either along rivers or on the coast,
so fuel is primarily delivered by barge. Where barge delivery is unavailable or uneconomic,
air tankers and in a few cases tanker trucks deliver fuel. Delivery is seasonal and limited by
sea or river ice, water levels, or ice road availability. Villages of a few hundred people must
store hundreds of thousands of gallons of fuel to meet their annual energy needs.
Many of rural Alaska’s bulk fuel facilities were built in the 1950’s and 1960’s or earlier. They
were not built to national standards or in compliance with current regulations, and some of
them are at the end of their useful lives. Yet they continue in service until upgraded or
replaced, in some cases posing risks to personal safety and the surrounding environment.
In recent years AEA’s BFU program has shifted the focus from new construction to repairs
where feasible. In many cases, existing bulk fuel tanks can be re-used if they are
appropriately painted and/or repaired. Repair projects focus on minimizing risk, using local
workers and equipment, and replacing piping, pumps, valves and tanks that are at the end
of their useful life.
APRIL 2018