Electric Co-op gets funding to protect infrastructure in canyon area

Flathead Electric Cooperative has received $2.6 million in federal funding to help protect its electrical infrastructure in the Essex area south of Glacier National Park.

Flathead Electric was among 38 electric co-ops and other rural utilities selected to receive the funding via the Grid Resilience and Innovation Partnerships program, which is funded through the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law and administered by the Department of Energy. The consortium is called the Wildfire Assessment and Resilience for Networks project.

According to the Flathead Electric, the dollars will be used to improve the reliability of its radial electric distribution system in a heavily forested area that is frequently challenged by tree-caused power outages, which have the potential to ignite a wildfire. 

Using satellite imagery, trees immediately adjacent to the area’s power lines will be trimmed. The Co-op also plans to install a battery energy storage system to provide backup power to Essex during outages.

Ashley Keltner, distributed energy supervisor for the Co-op, said the project offers an opportunity to mitigate the chance of wildfire, enhance the resilience of the radial Essex feeder, and test out new technologies that could be used elsewhere on the system. 

“For example, prior to receiving the grant, a BESS battery project had been identified by the Co-op as a technology to explore for our members,” Keltner said. “Funding, of course, was the challenge. The grant-funded WARN project substantially reduces the cost to our members of exploring the benefits of these technologies. The Co-op receives added value in getting to work side-by-side with 37 other cooperatives and learn from each other’s experiences.”

Mark Johnson, CEO and general manager of Flathead Electric Co-op, noted that earlier this year, the Co-op was awarded $10 million in Community Wildfire Defense Grant funding to support wildfire mitigation efforts from Columbia Falls to West Glacier. The additional $2.6 million allows Flathead Electric to continue that mitigation work from West Glacier to Essex. 

“These funds tie together most of the canyon landscape and help to better protect members in this remote and heavily treed area, as well as critical infrastructure that matters to all members, such as gas and power lines, railroad tracks and U.S. 2,” Johnson said.

To learn more, visit flatheadelectric.com/WARN.