The interconnected Alaskan communities of Toksook, Tununak, and Nightmute on Nelson Island in Alaska have a combined population of approximately 1,160 people. Almost the entire population belongs to the Alaska Native Nunakauyak Tribe. Alaska Village Electric Cooperative (AVEC) operates the power system for the communities, which have an average load just under 370 kW. The system incorporates three Northwind 100/19 100-kW wind turbines that were commissioned in October 2006 as part of a $22 million project to completely replace the power plant, upgrade the community intertie and distribution system, and install a new community bulk tank farm. Funding was provided by the Denali Commission, Rural Utility Service, Alaska Energy Authority, Coastal Village Regional Fund, and AVEC. The turbines are dispatched to maintain operating levels, and community heating dump loads were added to address fast overload conditions (although in recent operations, little energy has been applied to heating). Except for some initial issues (including a blade failure), the power system is operating well with a first-year turbine availability of 92.4%.
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