The Senate Energy Committee heard a presentation from the Alaska Energy Authority this week.
Senator Joe Thomas, Democrat from Fairbanks, was the sponsor of the ‘Lunch and Learn’ presentation on Tuesday. It was neither a bill, nor an appropriation, merely a learning session about the proposed dam on the Susitna River.
AEA managers, Brian Kerry and Jim Strandberg, said the proposal is currently looking at a lower Watana dam and does NOT include a Devil’s Canyon dam. The Watana dam would only be operational in summer. If constructed, the dam would provide 400 mega watts on the average. Right now, AEA says there are no roadblocks to licensing. They would expect resource agencies to be much more involved if or when there would be money for the project. They say it would take 15 years for the dam to get to full power, once construction begins. The roadblock currently is financing. There are no funds for the projected $4.9 BILLION project. They would need $10 million in the first two years.
No money has yet been appropriated.
At the end of the presentation, Thomas made it very clear HE wants to see the dam come to fruition. He named the lunch presentation ‘The Susitna Dam, from Delta to Donlin to Dillingham’.
