Hydroelectric Projects
Evins Mill Dam B&B Small Hydro Project
In 2019 and 2020, LEF Engineering provided engineering, technical and economic feasibility studies to install a small hydropower project at this charming Central Tennessee Bed and Breakfast Resort. Check out their web-site:
This historic Grist Mill site will support a ~50 KW Crossflow Turbine-Generator to provide about 80% of the B&B's retail power loads and lower their power bills accordingly. We worked with the local Cooperative Electric Utility on interconnection one-line diagrams and received the "go-ahead" from that standpoint.
Now we are finishing up the detailed cost and feasibility studies with a financial partner to present a final proposal to the B&B's Owner as soon as practical.
SE Alaska Island New Hydro Resource Study
In 2017 and 2018, LEF Engineering, PLLC in collaboration with another consulting firm performed an in depth analysis of the Island's current load resource balance versus adding new hydro power resources. The Island has no connection to an off-Island power grid.
This makes load-resource planning a real challenge from annual planning based on available precipitation on the Island. Real-time hydro resource scheduling to meet loads had also became a real challenge with noticeable effects of local Climate changes.
Larry Felton created a 70 year daily precipitation and temperature database to make recommendations on:
- 1) Optimize their current two hydropower projects operationally to avoid running their expensive diesel back-up;
- 2) Analyze the Island's potential new hydro resources for long term cost-effectiveness and dispatchability; and
- 3) look at new micro-hydro power projects for its water supply system and on two year round creeks on the Island.
H3W&P Combined Pumped/Storage and Agriculture Development Study
Starting in 2014, LEF Engineering, in collaboration with an agricultural developer, had visions of converting dry-land wheat and non-developed desert lands into irrigated lands. That would provide huge increases in the value of the agricultural products and the land itself. Vineyard Property were invited to a meeting in April 2019 and were interested in this Project's water supplying their properties. The water table they relied on was dropping.
LEF Engineering analyzed the properties involved and determined that providing pumping from the Columbia River to the top of the Properties would provide numerous dams and reservoirs with potential Pump / Storage Power capabilities. The exciting part of this Project is it would provide Seasonal Storage by pumping water into the Project's reservoirs in the Spring and then release the water providing electric power during the late Summer. Because of the massive size of the potentially irrigated lands, progress has been slow gathering all of the detailed Project costs for both new irrigation and the Pump / Storage capabilities. There are some potential environmental by providing additional cooler water back into local rivers during the Salmon migration in late Summer. Work continues.
New 128 MW Solar Project in S.E. Washington State
In 2021, LEF Engineering was hired to be the Solar Project's Technical Contact to navigate the BPA Large Generator Interconnection Process and keep Interconnection costs down. BPA Interconnection is a complicated technical process to say the least. LEF Engineering worked BPA interconnection engineers to find the maximum Project output of 128 MW to interconnect with an existing BPA transmission line before overloading the line.
In doing so, LEF Engineering reduced the Project's POI costs by $3M by staying within the 128 MW max output and working with the Project designers to design the Project to the 128 MW. Otherwise, the Project would have to pay BPA $3M to construct a new 6 mile transmission line to interconnection the Project and install a new power circuit breaker at a BPA Substation. LEF Engineering worked with the Solar Project's engineering designers to develop a "Single Line" Power Flow diagram required by BPA showing the DC power flows, Inverters, AC flows into the BPA POI.