The Chugach Electric Association was incorporated in Alaska in 1948. A population boom in Anchorage during World War II led to electricity shortages, as local hydroelectric power plants lacked the capacity to meet the increased demand. In fact, in 1947, the city had to resort to using boilers and generating equipment from a wrecked ocean-going tanker to provide almost half of Anchorage Public Utilities’ local power needs, at a high cost. Therefore, a group of 200 neighbors came together to form the Chugach Electric Association as a Rural Electrification Administration (REA) cooperative, and within four years, it had skyrocketed from nine customers to over 5,300. “In the years leading up to statehood in 1959, Chugach delivered the energy for growth, forging new partnerships and expanding generation and distribution capabilities,” the association described. Now, it is the largest electric utility in the state and among the largest across the country.
In 2021, the association released a Renewable Energy Plan with a goal of adding 100,000 megawatt-hours of renewable generation by March 2025. The following year, it set targets of 35% carbon reduction by 2030 and 50% by 2040, relative to 2012 levels. At the end of 2023, Chugach had already reduced its carbon intensity by 28%.
At the end of 2024, the company had 824.3 MW of net generation, with 472 miles of transmission lines and 3,361 miles of distribution lines. “It is our goal to deliver safe, reliable power at competitive rates,” the association wrote. Its diverse resource mix is a testament to that statement. Although 80.8% of the kilowatt-hours were generated from natural gas, 16.9% from hydroelectric resources, and 2.3% from wind.
Photo Courtesy Chugach Electric…