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HomeMy WebLinkAboutBethal to Oscarville tie line upgrade 3428-1839 AEA ConceptPaper 2025 3428-1839_AlaskaEnergyAuthority_ConceptPaper 1 Project Title: Bethel to Oscarville Tie-line Upgrade OCED eXCHANGE Control Number: 3428-1839 Applicant Name: Alaska Energy Authority Applicant Entity Type: State and local governmental entities Topic Area of Application: Topic Area 4: Isolated microgrids Project Location: Bethel Oscarville Alaska Alaska 99680 99559 Population and Census Verification of Project Location and/or Directly Benefitting Community or Communities: Bethel city, Alaska - Census Bureau Profile Oscarville CDP, Alaska - Census Bureau Profile Census Tract(s) Impacted by Project: Bethel – 2050000200, Oscarville - 2050000100 Project Technologies: Microgrids, transmission or distribution, energy efficiency, dual use. One-Sentence Project Description: Upgrade the poles, structures and transmission line between the city of Bethel and village of Oscarville in Alaska Team Member Organizations (e.g., Sub-Recipients, Key Technology Providers, and Project Partners): Alaska Energy Authority (AEA) – State Entity General Communication Inc. (GCI) – Project Partner, Key technology provider, Sub-Recipient. Alaska Village Electric Cooperative (AVEC) – Project Partner, Key tech. provider, Sub-Recipient Bethel Native Corporation (BNC) – Project Partner, Community involvement & coordination Village of Oscarville - Project Partner, Community involvement & coordination Do the proposed recipient and all subrecipients qualify as domestic entities? Yes Points of Contact AEA GCI AVEC BNC Village of Oscarville Name William Price P.E. Aaron Helmericks Bill Stamm Ana Hoffman Colton Ulroan Email wprice@akenergyauthority.org ahelmericks@gci.com bstamm@avec.org ahoffman@bncak.com oscarvilletc@gmail.com Phone Number 907-770-3027 907-868-7000 907-565-5531 907-545-4151 907-737-7099 Demonstration Project Manager: William Price, AEA Senior Infrastructure Engineer & Project Manager. Business Point of Contact: Curtis W. Thayer AEA Executive Director cthayer@akenergyauthority.org 907-771-3000 Confidentiality Statement (if applicable): N/A Total DOE Funding Request ($M USD): $3,800,000 Total Non-Federal Cost Share ($M USD): $200,000 Total Project Costs ($M USD): $4,000,000 Total Period of Performance (yrs): 2 years 3428-1839_AlaskaEnergyAuthority_ConceptPaper 2 Technical Solution: The Alaska Energy Authority (AEA) in partnership with the local power and telecom utility providers, GCI and AVEC, will design and build a new transmission line between the City of Bethel and the village of Oscarville. The community of Oscarville is a small rural Alaskan village with 70 people. The village is served with power by the Alaska Village Electric Cooperative (AVEC) via a failing 3.5- mile-long tie-line between Oscarville and Bethel, Alaska. Bethel is a city with over 6,000 people where power is generated using diesel, wind, and solar. The line was built circa 1989 by the Alaska Energy Authority, which is a Public Corporation of the State of Alaska. Over the last 35 years the line has been subject to significant frost jacking that has been accelerated by melting permafrost. The tie-line requires constant maintenance to keep the poles from falling, and much of the line is inaccessible during warm months. Please see example pictures taken below: The poles also support a fiberoptic cable which provides the City of Bethel with broadband internet used by the community, school, and local businesses. Without this cable, the only access to internet is through satellite or microwave-based systems, which are slow and unreliable. This transmission tie-line is critical infrastructure for both Oscarville and Bethel, and needs to be upgraded to ensure its availability into the future. AEA owns the line, however there is no revenue mechanism for AEA to fund maintenance. Often repairs are completed using emergency funds, which limit the State’s ability to respond to other emergencies. 3428-1839_AlaskaEnergyAuthority_ConceptPaper 3 The project consists of replacing the wood poles set directly in the tundra, with poles mounted to pile driven steel h-pile. Pile supported poles have been demonstrated throughout Alaska to be effective against frost jacking as well as permafrost degradation, and would result in adding 30-50 years to the life of the tie-line. The line is approximately 3.5 miles long, with 98 poles. The poles support a single-phase transmission line from Bethel to Oscarville as well as a fiberoptic broadband cable carrying high speed internet to Bethel. As this tie-line is existing and in use, the routing, pole locations, easements, and permitting are either in place or readily updated. This line represents the only reliable source of electricity in Oscarville. This line also represents the only access the community of Oscarville has to renewable power (generated in Bethel). As the line is existing and both communities are dependent on its continued use, there are no known barriers to the completion of this project. Both the Village of Oscarville and the Bethel Native Corporation are project partners and will assist with community outreach. Business Case: The dilapidated line is threatened due to age and frost jacking, and there is no funding available to rebuild it. Were it to fail there is no alternate source of generation in Oscarville which can be relied upon for long term power. An immediate emergency would be declared and temporary diesel generators would need to be sourced along with necessary fuel and fuel storage. The alternative to this transmission line is for the village to construct a diesel power plant and accompanying bulk fuel facility at the cost of $5-10 million dollars. The project would take years to accomplish and there is no available funding for such a project. If the village were to transition to self-generation though diesel power, the cost of residential power in Oscarville would double. The following rates represent what Oscarville is currently paying for electricity, and are compared to a nearby similar village who must self-generate with diesel fuel. With Line Residential Rates $0.28 Commercial Rates $0.50 kW/hr Without Line Residential Rates ~$0.70 Commercial Rates ~$1.04 kW/hr As this cost change is extreme, and the time required to build the facility is measured in years, with no available funds; the loss of this tie-line may result in the village of Oscarville being abandoned. The project will offer employment opportunities to community members of both Bethel and Oscarville. Stabilizing this line will also support long term planning for both communities now that the health of the line is secure. 3428-1839_AlaskaEnergyAuthority_ConceptPaper 4 In addition to the power transmission to Oscarville, this tie-line is the only existing path for the fiberoptic line which supplies Bethel with broadband internet. If the tie-line were to fail and not be replaced, it could cause an interruption of fiber broadband internet services to Bethel and the surrounding villages. Replacement of this infrastructure would support not only the critical long-term energy needs of Oscarville but support critical fiber broadband communications within the surrounding communities. While the State of Alaska owns the line, any funding AEA would use must be appropriated by the Alaska State Legislature and must compete with other statewide programs. The State’s efforts to sell or transfer the line have been blocked by the condition of the poles. The line must be rebuilt before another responsible party can accept the obligation as the population of Oscarville is very small and power sales are insufficient to fund the lines replacement. The non-federal cost share for this project will be raised among the project partners. Once rebuilt, the line will be transferred to AVEC who has the expertise, experience, and manpower in Bethel to maintain the line going forward. A pile supported transmission line is dramatically less expensive to maintain. This change makes it possible for AVEC to raise the revenue required to operate and maintain of the line through their existing electricity sales and a Joint Pole Agreement with GCI. Team: William Price P.E., Senior Infrastructure Engineer and Project Manager for AEA. has designed and managed power projects throughout rural Alaska for 14 years. AEA has an extensive track record in constructing critical energy infrastructure. AEA has built power plants, transmission lines, and distribution systems in nearly every community in rural Alaska. William will serve as the Project Manager and will coordinate between other partners to build the new transmission line. In addition, AEA has mature staff and management systems in place to administer federal awards. AEA’s Finance and Accounting departments will manage the fiscal compliance and reporting requirements for grants and sub-awards. Aaron Helmericks – General Communications Inc. (GCI) Vice President of Corporate Development. A multi-generation Alaskan having grown up in rural northern Alaska and with a passion for bringing modern communications infrastructure across Alaska to close the digital divide to rural communities. Mr. Helmericks, a previous Top 40 under 40 awardee, has a broad range of experience across his 20+ year career focused primarily in the energy and telecommunications industries. His experience includes background in Technology Operations, Project Engineering, Industrial Telecom, Telecommunications, Strategic Planning, Mergers & Acquisitions and Management. At GCI, he is responsible for helping lead organizations strategic planning, business development initiatives, and contributing to the company overall success and growth. 3428-1839_AlaskaEnergyAuthority_ConceptPaper 5 Bill Stamm, President and Chief Executive Officer of Alaska Village Electric Cooperative (AVEC). AVEC provides power to 57 villages throughout rural Alaska starting in 1968. AVEC also operates multiple tie-lines between villages similar to this project. AVEC will work with AEA and GCI to ensure the tie-line is built to industry standards as well as to AVEC specifications. Ana Hoffman, President/CEO of Bethel Native Corporation (BNC) since 2006. BNC is an Alaskan Native Corporation engaged in a number of commercial businesses, including land ownership, property development, construction, manufacturing, environmental consulting, government contracting and other businesses. Based in Bethel, Ana leads all business operations of BNC and its affiliated subsidiaries. She has also served as Co- Chair of the Alaska Federation of Natives since 2013. Ana received a BA degree from Stanford University and a MA degree from University of Alaska, Fairbanks. BNC owns much of the land this project will occur on, and will be integral in ensuring all permits and easements are updated. Colton Ulroan, Tribal Administrator for the Traditional Village of Oscarville will partner with AEA to ensure all necessary permits, easements and community input is obtained. The village will host a public meeting in Oscarville where the community concerns can be heard and addressed by project partners. The village will also assist with employment opportunities as they become available. Project Plan: AEA, GCI and AVEC will contract the engineering and construction. The project is expected to be straight forward as the transmission line will utilize methods and technology well proven to be effective in rural Alaska. Please see the project timeline below: Phase 1, Design & permitting – 6 months, first and second quarter 2026 Phase 2A, Materials procurement – 6 months, third and fourth quarter 2026 Phase 2B, Construction – 3 months, conducted over winter. first quarter 2027. Project partners have existing manpower and resources in Bethel. Other project partners reside in Bethel and/or Oscarville. All partners have a vested interest in the success and long-term viability of the new transmission line, and once construction is underway the construction inspections will be conducted frequently by the project team. While the project is straightforward, the application will budget for additional time to accommodate delays which were not anticipated such as material shortages, weather delays, or cost overruns. 3428-1839_AlaskaEnergyAuthority_ConceptPaper 6 AEA, AVEC, and GCI will collaboratively develop the design and construction bid documents. Design and construction will be accomplished by Alaskan firms with extensive experience building similar projects in rural Alaska. Once constructed, operation and maintenance will be conducted by AVEC (power) and GCI (telecom). Both entities have a vested interest in the long-term viability of this tie- line and have extensive experience operating and maintaining transmission and telecom lines in rural Alaska. Risk Risk Level Mitigation Residual Risk Cost overruns Medium Project partners have a vested interest and revenue mechanisms to fund cost overruns. Low Unexpected Line routing change Low There are no known concerns by utilities, community members, or representatives. Also, there is not indication that any pole location needs to be changed. Low Weather delays Low The project is expecting to be completed during the first quarter of 2027. The project has a relatively short construction period, as such a weather delay is not expected to cause an extended delay. Low Easement & permitting Low The project intends to utilize the existing easements, route, and pole locations. Project partners (BNC & Oscarville represent the two communities and land owners affected by this project. Low Unanticipated community concerns Low While concerns are possible, the tie- line has been in place and in use for 35 years with no known complaints. Low Community and Workers: Primary benefit to the community is in the long-term viability of the tie-line which provides power to the village of Oscarville and broadband internet for the city of Bethel and surrounding villages. 3428-1839_AlaskaEnergyAuthority_ConceptPaper 7 During construction, there will be opportunities for temporary work. The project will work with BNC and the village of Oscarville to advertise those opportunities, and the contractors will be given incentives to hire locally. AEA has been working with the Village of Oscarville and similar villages throughout rural Alaska for over 35 years. The agency has a long history of similar collaborative projects. AEA has recently been working to facilitate emergency repairs on the existing line, and has been working toward transferring the asset to a party capable of maintaining the asset. AVEC has been providing power in rural Alaska since 1968, and currently supplies power to every community member affected by this project. Once the line is built to AVEC specifications, AVEC will be well suited to assume operation and maintenance of the transmission line. There are no known negative impacts to this project as the line is existing, and there are no proposed changes to its current path or use. During the course of design and construction, should negative impacts be found or be expressed, the project partners including BNC and Village of Oscarville who represent both communities, will facilitate communication with the affected parties/stakeholders. The project team will work collaboratively with stakeholders to address any concerns and mitigate any negative impacts found.