Economic Comparison of Power Generation Alternatives for Thorne Bay, Alaska

Abstract

This study is an economic screening analysis of power generation alternatives for the city of Thorne Bay, a community of about 650 people located on Prince of Wales Island in Southeast Alaska. The City currently operates a municipal utility providing electric service to 190 residential and 40 commercial and small industrial customers. City power is currently generated by three diesel units with a total installed capacity of [600 + 650 + 325] = 1,575 kilowatts (kW). Three non-diesel alternatives for base load power are considered in this analysis. The first is an intertie from the Craig-Klawock power grid to Thorne Bay, which would allow Thorne Bay to receive power from the Black Bear Lake hydroelectric project now under construction by Alaska Power and Telephone (AP&T), a regulated investor-owned utility. The second alternative is a wood-waste fired power plant located in Thorne Bay, making use of the wood waste from the Ketchikan Pulp Company (KPC) sort yard. The third alternative is a biomass power plant, also loctaed in Thorne Bay, but fired primarily from municipal solid waste generated on Prince of Wales Island. This plant would also use wood waste, but as a supplemental fuel.