Innovations in River Renewable Energy Power Remote Alaskan Communities

Water has been used as a renewable source of energy for over two thousand years, and in the United States, hydropower has been used since before the nation’s founding. Today, the U.S. hydropower sector produces 38 percent of domestic renewable energy electricity, mostly through hydroelectric reservoirs connected to dams. Pioneering innovations in water-based renewables, called marine renewable or hydrokinetic energy, are providing a new spin on this ancient power source and present opportunities for decreasing dependence on fossil fuels and improving environmental outcomes.

Hydrokinetic energy generates power through waves, tides, or currents, typically in marine or riverine settings. The earliest forms of this energy have existed for decades, but recent advances in efficiency and scale have made it an increasingly viable energy option, especially for remote communities that have difficulty accessing electricity from standard power grids. Ocean Renewable Power Company (ORPC), a hydrokinetic technologies firm operating in the United States, Canada, and Ireland, is one of a small but growing number of companies pushing this technology’s research, development, and deployment forward.

While the company has a diverse hydrokinetic energy portfolio, its RivGen® Power System has garnered particular attention for its application in the remote Alaskan village of Igiugig. Located in Southwest Alaska, Igiugig is an Indigenous community of 69 people. The Kvichak River running through the village to the nearby lake provides the community with salmon and, since 2014, electricity.

For many remote communities like Igiugig, diesel fuel has long been the main energy option, which is expensive to fly or barge in.

“Communities like Igiugig are being killed by the cost of diesel,” asserted Susy Kist, Marketing and Communications Manager for ORPC. “Some communities are spending 60 percent of their income on fuel to turn their lights on. It is just not sustainable.”

The RivGen® Power System has offset the cost of diesel in Igiugig by one-third. A second power system, planned to be installed next year, would raise that offset to about 90-percent. Kist noted that unlike traditional fossil fuel alternatives like wind and solar energy, hydrokinetic power provides a predictable, baseload source of electricity that does not vary throughout the day or year. As the systems are completely submerged, they are not impacted by extreme weather events and do not impede boat traffic.

The hydrokinetic system also provides environmental benefits by lowering the risk of diesel tanks contaminating the Kvichak River, which constitutes the largest sockeye salmon run in the world. Kist noted that extensive research, including 24/7 video monitoring of the RivGen® device, have not shown adverse environmental impacts. Because water is denser than air, the turbines of the generator spin more slowly than the arms of a wind turbine. The lower rotating speed helps keep wildlife safe.

“You can see salmon smolts running through the river on the video,” Kist said.

Kist emphasized that ORPC worked in close partnership with Igiugig community members during the installation of the RivGen® system. Community recommendations and traditional knowledge of the area’s geography and ecology are incorporated into the project, including where the project was sited. Local contractors are engaged in installation, and ORPC shares all data collected from monitoring and installing the project with the community. Kist attributes the success of the project to these close ties.

“These local people have been plying the waterways for generations,” Kist said. “They are the experts we need in these areas.”

For now, Kist believes there is potential for hydrokinetic energy to grow in other remote areas with high diesel costs, which she estimated accounts for as many as 700 million people. This alternative power source would lower fuel transportation costs enough to allow communities like Igiugig to remain where they are.

“They love where they live. You see why they love it so much, and why they want to stay there,” Kist said. “They are trying to find a better way—they have to.”

Authors: Uma Atre and Amber Todoroff