Commission recap, 1/28/2025 — New era for Grant PUD fiber, more...

Thursday, 30 January 2025

(Note: We apologize for this week's audio recording, which is intermittent in parts, due to technical problems.)

For the past 25 years, Grant PUD’s wholesale Fiber Optic network has been in growth mode as it focused on the task of building out a system to serve Grant PUD customers countywide. Now with all major construction complete for the initial network, the Grant PUD Telecom & Fiber Services team is moving into a new era of operations and maintenance to keep the wholesale network sustainable.

Terry McKenzie, Senior Manager of Telecom and Fiber Services told the Grant PUD’s Commission during her quarterly business report that at the start of 2025, about 75% of locations with fiber available are connect to the network through one of Grant PUD’s participating retail internet service providers. She added that the wholesale fiber revenues are projected to increase each year.

These revenues, projected to be $15.9 million in 2025, will cover the costs to operate and maintain the system, as well as capital expenses to extend the network to a few small pockets of remaining customers who were bypassed in the initial construction, plus new homes and businesses that are being built in the county. Remaining dollars will be used to repay funds that came from Grant PUD’s electric system to build out that network. At the end of the year, the fiber system is projected to return $6.2 million back to Grant PUD’s general fund.

McKenzie asked the commission for direction on what to do about the 290 Grant PUD customers who reside in the Spring Canyon area of Lincoln County (2:36:20 on commission audio). Since they are not in Grant County, they were not included in the plans for the countywide buildout. A recent modification in state law would allow Grant PUD to extend fiber service to them, since they are power customers outside of the Grant County line.

Commissioners directed McKenzie to provide them with more information including how many of the customers would commit to subscribing to the network, how much they would be willing to pay for the estimated construction costs. McKenzie said she would return with that information in a later report for the commission.

See the full report on pages 48-75 of the presentation materials. Hear the full discussion at 3:17:33 on the commission audio.

Study will gauge future of Crescent Bar golf course

Grant PUD will hire a contractor by late March to study the long-term feasibility of the golf course on Crescent Bar Island.

Ross Hendrick, senior manager of Environmental Affairs, said the analysis will include the costs to continue to maintain the golf course, the course’s potential to eventually cover its costs, and potential options replace the course with other recreational amenities.

Responding to a concern by Commissioner Tom Flint, Hendrick said any options considered would continue to be owned and operated by Grant PUD and its contractors.

The analysis should be finished by year end, with a possible commission decision on future recreation programing coming early next year, Hendrick said. Crescent Bar is on the Columbia River, west of Quincy.

See Environmental Affairs’ full quarterly business report on pages 26-35 of the presentation materials. Hear the full discussion at 1:39:37 on the commission audio.

Commissioners also:

Unanimously approved Resolution 9076, authorizing a bid and awarding a contract for $2,097,226.19 with supplier General Pacific for overhead conductor. General Pacific was commercially and technically compliant with Grant PUD standards and the lowest of the four bids received. Read more about the contract on pages 8-54 of the commission packet.
Unanimously approved Motion 3505 authorizing the general manager/CEO, on behalf of Grant PUD, to approve a $1,199,417.21 contract with the Okanagan Nation Alliance to build a new fishway in Penticton BC, Canada, that will allow unimpeded fish passage to Okanagan Lake. The project is part of a 20-year collaboration with the Alliance to protect, mitigate and enhance populations of salmon species (coho, sockeye, fall and summer Chinook) that migrate through Priest Rapids and Wanapum dams on the Columbia River. Read more about the contract on pages 55-76 of the commission packet.
Heard that unexpected turbine/generator-unit downtime was virtually zero at Priest Rapids and Wanapum dams during the last quarter (Oct.-December) of 2024, well below acceptable targets set for the quarter. At Wanapum Dam, scheduled down time for one unit was slightly longer than expected to complete corrective maintenance. Overhauls of two turbine/generator units are scheduled this quarter – PO8, at Priest Rapids Dam and WO7 at Wanapum Dam. These projects will begin in March. See the full report on pages 1-10 of the presentation materials. Hear the full discussion at 48:18 on the commission audio.
Heard that outage durations for the customers who experienced power outages from September 2024 through year end were, collectively, about 15 minutes longer than the maximum goal of 100 total minutes. Outage durations were well below the maximum goal through September. Director of Power Delivery Ron Alexander said a few significant outages, with longer repair times caused the total to creep upward. The average total outage time for Pacific Northwest utilities is 120 minutes, he said. The average number of outages per customer were fewer than one – well below average for the Northwest. Grant PUD crews completed 1,233 customer hookups and other engineering work orders during the year’s fourth quarter, the highest number since before the COVID-19 pandemic. See the full report on pages 13-25 of the presentation materials. Hear the full discussion at 55:55 on the commission audio.
Learned that more than 11 public schools and 762 students participated in the Archaeology Days field trip at the Wanapum Heritage Center last October, said Brett Lenz, Manager of Cultural Resources during his quarterly presentation. The next day, 155 adults participated in the second day of Archaeology Days, which offers those attending to hear from experts about archeological topics focused on the region. The Wanapum Heritage Center is open to the public Thursdays through Mondays, with Tuesdays and Wednesdays dedicated to local school districts. To learn more about the heritage center, visit org. See the full report on pages 62-75 of the presentation materials. Hear the full discussion at 4:01:25 on the commission audio.
Heard how the Asset Management Department tracks about 140,000 known high-value assets throughout Grant PUD’s system during a report from Senior Manager Russ Seiler. By cataloguing and tracking assets into a common system, the utility can ensure that they are properly maintained and replaced before they fail. “We want to take care of our system today and sustain it for the next generation,” Seiler said. See the full report on pages 36-47 of the presentation materials. Hear the full discussion at 2:42:20 on the commission audio.