And the Winner Is… | Tuesday, March 29, 2011

Congratulations to Kara Went, who is the winner in our Earth Hour draw for a variety of energy-saving home devices. Thank you to the Yukon government's Energy Solutions Centre and the Yukon Conservation Society for donating some of the prizes, several of which are shown below.

When Is Electric Heat OK? | Monday, March 28, 2011

Question: What is Yukon Energy's perspective on using electric power for residential heating (in Whitehorse)? For example our oil-fired boiler is 50 years old and will need to be replaced soon. We've heard that an electric boiler would be more environmentally friendly since most of the Yukon's power comes from hydro. Yet I see from the daily energy consumption graph today that even when the night time temperature is only in the -5C to -10C range Yukon Energy is still needing to use diesel to meet demand.

So if we convert to an electric boiler, and so do X number of other households following the same line of reasoning, one can reasonably expect that Yukon Energy's diesel use will also increase. In effect all we'll have done is shift residential diesel use to Yukon Energy, placing a larger burden on an aging infrastructure. Yes more energy sources are going to come online in the next few years, but at what point will hydro power for heat *actually* shift the balance to be a real environmental choice (if ever)?

Your question is a good one and you have identified the crux of the issue. It is not Yukon Energy's place to dictate how people should heat their homes. That is obviously an individual choice. However it is important that Yukoners understand that heating with electricity may result in Yukon Energy having to burn more diesel. This may ultimately drive up the cost of electricity for all Yukoners, no matter what they use to heat their homes.

At this point I cannot predict if or when the "shift" that you speak of will take place. That, in part, will depend on the type and amount of renewable energy Yukon Energy is able to develop. Please know that the Corporation is working as hard as possible to find new sources of power that are not just environmentally responsible but also affordable, reliable, and flexible.

I'm afraid I haven't given you a very satisfactory answer in terms of your own particular situation. All I can suggest is that you weigh the pros and cons and choose what works best for your family.

Enhancing Our Energy Consumption Graphs | Monday, March 28, 2011

Today's question: I find the energy consumption graph for the last 24 hours very useful, and we use it to try and time our laundry etc. to a time of day when it is less likely to shift electric generation from hydro to diesel. It has no history though. Would you please do the same for consumption patterns over weeks/months/years? (and/or publish the raw statistics so people can create with their own graphs).

Thank you for your feedback regarding the consumption graph. Over the last few months a number of people have asked us to provide weekly or monthly graphs, and we are working on doing that. There are some technicial issues that are making it more difficult than we first invisioned, but we hope to have those worked out soon.

Way to Go Yukoners! | Sunday, March 27, 2011

Give yourself a pat on the back...last night during Earth Hour, Yukoners reduced their energy consumption by about one megawatt. That's the equivalent of 10,000 100-watt light bulbs and that's up from last year, at which time we reduced consumption by .8 of a megawatt during Earth Hour.

Tell us what you did to save power last night and your name will go in a draw for a variety of energy-saving devices for your home. The deadline for entries is 9 a.m. tomorrow morning.

Charrette Summary | Friday, March 25, 2011

We've had a chance to summarize the discussion/suggestions that came out of our energy charrette held earlier this month. We wanted to share our notes with you. Please be aware that these are notes only; a more comprehensive and formal report will be available by late next month. For those of you who attended the charrette (either the day or the evening sessions), please let us know if you notice anything in these notes that is incorrect or missing.

The Long Journey Home | Thursday, March 24, 2011

It’s been quite a journey, but the new seven megawatt generator for our Aishihik plant is now on site. The generator was manufactured in India, travelled to Vancouver by boat, and was trucked up the Alaska Highway on a large flatbed.

Once in Yukon, it had to cross two bridges on the Aishihik Road that are are not able to support the weight of a 34 tonne generator, so Yukon Energy had an overspan constructed (a steel bridge that fit over the existing bridges) to make the crossings possible. A large loader went ahead of the generator-laden semi-trailer as a precaution, in case it was needed to help pull the load and steer. In the end, the semi was able to handle the job all on its own.

Once on site, not one but two cranes were needed to unload the generator.

The journey still isn’t quite finished. While it is on our Aishihik property, the generator must be lowered by crane 110 meters into an underground tunnel where the equipment will be moved into place and installed. That will happen this summer and will be done by a subcontractor that specializes in moving large loads.

Most of the other components needed to operate the generator have been delivered, although we are still waiting for one more piece (the turbine runner), which should arrive from Austria later this spring.

We expect Aishihik 3 to be operating by the fall. The Aishihik third turbine project will allow us to use the water available at our plant more efficiently. It is expected to save Yukon Energy $1.2 million or more per year in diesel costs and will reduce greenhouse gas emissions by an estimated 3,800 tonnes annually.

Below are some photos of the generator crossing one of the Aishihik Road bridges, being unloaded at our Aishihik plant, and a shot of where the generator will be installed later this year.

More On Yesterday’s Power Outage | Wednesday, March 23, 2011

We now have more information about the cause of yesterday's power outage in the Central and Southern Yukon. The black-out was a result of a problem with a piece of our equipment at the Faro mine. The technical term for the equipment is a low side bus duct, which essentially is a set of cables that connect our transformer to the Faro mine. The mine is currently being fed through an alternate transformer until we can repair or replace the damaged bus duct.

The Faro mine noticed smoke and sparks coming from the bus duct, and notified us. We want to thank the mine for reporting the problem to us, because it helped us locate the source of the problem.

This Afternooon’s Power Outage | Tuesday, March 22, 2011

Power has now been restored to almost all Yukon communities that were affected by this afternoon's outage. The power went out to most areas of the Southern and Central Yukon at 2:23 this afternoon. Electricity was restored to almost everyone by 3:45 p.m., with some areas receiving power sooner than that. A few customers between Faro and Carmacks remained without power until about 9:30 tonight.

Whenever there is an outage, our first priority is to restore power, and only once that has been accomplished do we begin to investigate the cause. We have dispatched crews to do that investigative work and we hope to know the reason for the outage by tomorrow.

Please accept our apologies for any difficulties this outage may have caused you.

Catching the Wind | Monday, March 21, 2011

As you may be aware, Yukon Energy has been looking at two sites for potential wind farms: Mount Sumanik near Whitehorse and Ferry Hill in the Stewart Crossing area. We are advancing both sites as prospective projects and we will include both options in the latest version of our 20-year resource plan, which we are updating this year.

We recently began the installation of some state-of-the-art equipment on Ferry Hill so we could measure and monitor wind speeds and several other parameters in real time. The equipment will also help us determine the best design for a potential wind farm on that site. We will monitor the site for at least a year, after which time we will report back to Yukoners with the results.

Once we have completed the wind monitoring work on Ferry Hill we are planning to do the same on Mount Sumanik. Much of the general information and analysis of the Ferry Hill site will also be applicable to Mt. Sumanik, a fact that will speed up development time should a project proposal emerge from the study at this location.