After years of effort, all six Railbelt utilities have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) to move forward with an organization to work more closely together to manage Alaska’s largest interconnected grid.

Repairs to the transmission line damaged by the Swan Lake Fire have been completed by Homer Electric Association and the line was re-energized on Dec. 19. Following the wildfires that began in June, the line has been out of service since Aug. 18. The damage to the line was less extensive than first thought, with damage to three structures.

Chugach Electric Association, Inc., is alerting members to expect bill increases in the coming months following the Swan Lake Fire which damaged the transmission line that connects the Bradley Lake Hydroelectric Project to the Chugach system.

The transmission line has been out of service for several weeks at the request of fire crews fighting the fire, which has now burned over 167,000 acres on the Kenai Peninsula.

With the current dry weather conditions and high fire danger, Chugach Electric Association, Inc., is taking steps to mitigate wildfire risks in its service territory, some of which could lengthen power outage times. 

Chugach is taking temporary measures to power line operations in the Anchorage Bowl, Tyonek, and Northern Kenai Peninsula. Crews will also be stepping up tree clearing on the Anchorage Hillside as long as the fire danger remains high.

Chugach Electric Association, Inc. members re-elected Bettina Chastain and Harold Hollis to the utility’s Board of Directors. Election results were announced Tuesday night at the electric cooperative’s annual meeting held at the Dena’ina Civic and Convention Center. Bettina Chastain, Harold Hollis, Mitchell Roth and Ron Stafford ran for the two open seats. Directors Chastain and Hollis will serve four-year terms.

One year after Anchorage voters authorized the Municipality of Anchorage (MOA) to sell Municipal Light & Power (ML&P) to Chugach Electric Association, Chugach has filed an Asset Purchase and Sale Agreement with the Regulatory Commission of Alaska (RCA) for its review and approval of the acquisition. In its filing April 1, Chugach filed an application to expand its service territory under its Certificate of Public Convenience and Necessity (CPCN) to include the service territory currently served by ML&P.