News & Events

Check this section for Yukon Energy's latest news and coming events.

If you have questions about any of the information posted here, please contact:

Lisa Wiklund
Manager, Community Relations
Yukon Energy Corporation
Phone: (867) 393-5398
Email: Lisa.Wiklund@yec.yk.ca

Environment
Sep 01, 2010  2

The Silver Lining in the Dark Cloud

Of course no one wants or likes power outages. However there was one good thing that happened as a result of an outage on August 18th. It allowed us to find a new tool to help the Yukon River Chinook salmon reach their spawning grounds upstream from the Whitehorse Rapids fishladder.  During the outage, we first had to increase the amount of water we allowed through the spillway of our Whitehorse dam so that our reservoir, Schwatka Lake, would not overflow. Then we slowed the flow so that the lake could re-fill. The extra water seemed to push the salmon closer to the entrance of the ladder. Then when the water flow was cut back the fish seemed to be enticed by the water flowing in the ladder. More than 100 salmon swam up the ladder in the few hours after the power outage.  We had never seen anything like this before. Working with fishladder and fish hatchery staff, we simulated these conditions four times over the last two weeks (minus the outage of course). Each time there was a similar response from the salmon. The faster the salmon can move through the fishladder and get to their spawning grounds the better it is for their health, so we hope to be able to use this tool in future years as a way of helping the fish on their migration. However we can't guarantee that we'll be able to do this every year; it will depend on summer water levels.
Energy Supply
Sep 07, 2010  2

No Easy Answers

If you are a regular reader of this blog you will know that Yukon Energy is exploring the possibility of putting a weir on the Atlin River, allowing us to slow the flow of water from Atlin Lake in the fall so that there would be more water for us to use for winter power production. A number of people have asked, "Why don't you instead buy power from the existing hydro dam on Pine Creek in Atlin?" Yukon Energy would love to be able to purchase power from the Taku River Tlinigit First Nation, which owns and operates the plant. However it's not that simple. First of all, the First Nation doesn’t have the amount of power that we need. It could opt to build a second power plant for additional hydro, although we don’t know how that would be received by the residents of Atlin. Then there would be the cost of us building a transmission line from Atlin to Jake’s Corner in the Yukon. We would also need to buy the power from the First Nation, adding to the total cost per kilowatt hour. We calculate power via a transmission line would cost between 20 to 25 cents/kilowatt hour, compared to the weir option which would be in the 7 to 10 cents/kilowatt hour range. We are looking at a whole range of possible sources of clean energy, including enhancing our existing hydro facilities (Mayo B, a third turbine for Aishihik, the Gladstone Diversion concept, the Southern Lakes Storage proposal), geo-thermal, additional wind, waste to energy, and energy conservation. In almost all those cases, there are no easy or perfect solutions and there is often the need to weigh the pros and cons and move forward with what we see as the best choices given the circumstances. We are certainly open to any and all suggestions for what we can do to meet the growing demand for electricity in the Yukon, keeping in mind that we are committed to providing power with clean, renewable sources.
Energy Supply
Sep 15, 2010  Comment

Atlin Office Closing

Every Friday throughout the summer, Yukon Energy representatives have been in Atlin to give residents the chance to ask us questions or pass along comments regarding the Southern Lakes enhancements concepts we are exploring. We committed to keeping our Atlin office open until mid-September. This Friday will be the last day the office will be operating. We'd like to thank everyone who took the time to come visit us and we are happy to come back to the community once we have the results of our first season of field studies, likely sometime in November. We have compiled a list of the questions we were asked most often this summer in Atlin and thought it might be useful to share it with you.
News
Sep 16, 2010  Comment

What You Said About Us

This summer Yukon Energy hired a firm to conduct a series of phone and on-line opinion surveys for us. The purpose of the surveys was to get a sense of what the general Yukon public and local business and community leaders know and believe about the Corporation. The information gathered assisted us in developing a public information campaign aimed at helping Yukoners better understand who Yukon Energy is, what we are working to achieve, and why. We were impressed with Yukoners’ higher-than-average interest in participating in the research. When asked to answer questions about Yukon Energy, very few people said no. In total, more than 600 people from nine Yukon communities took part in the surveys. The full results can be found here (Part 1) and here (Part 2).  For those of you who would like the Readers' Digest version, here is a summary: -Yukoners understand that hydro-generated electricity is the mainstay of power generation in the Yukon, but strongly support the development of alternative energy sources to supplement hydro. You want Yukon Energy to bring forward creative ideas in meeting future energy needs. -Yukoners strongly support the need for energy conservation as part of the solution to managing the Yukon’s energy supply and you see this as a shared responsibility among the public, the business community and big industry. -Yukoners have confidence in Yukon Energy’s ability to plan, develop and manage the Yukon’s energy needs but are concerned that political and vested interest groups can be detrimental to effective, strategic, long-term planning. -Yukoners feel you pay less or the same for energy as your northern counterparts and more than southern Canadians. -Yukoners want to remain engaged in the discussion around the Yukon’s energy issues and needs and Yukon Energy’s objectives for a clean energy future that fits well with a public desire for cleaner energy alternatives. We'd like to thank everyone who participated in the survey. While this was the first survey of this kind that Yukon Energy has done, it certainly won't be the last, and we will continue to communicate with stakeholders and the Yukon public about our plans and initiatives as we work to implement the priorities identified in the survey.  A note of congratulations to Erin Giesbrecht, seen below, who is the winner of an iPad (in awarding this prize we randomly drew Erin's name from all those who filled out the online survey).

Reliability
Sep 17, 2010  Comment

The Equipment Guard

Yukon Energy is working hard to provide you with safe and reliable power. Once again this year, we are spending two-thirds of our core maintenance budget on projects that will improve reliability. However despite our best efforts, power outages do sometimes occur. That's why we encourage you to invest in protection for your appliances and electronic equipment. There are a few options to choose from: Outside Surge Protectors These are sometimes called outside surge arresters and a qualified electrician can install them on your electric meter or panel to help protect your electronic equipment. Inside Surge Protectors These devices are installed directly between the equipment you want to protect and the wall outlet. They act as the last line of defense against power surges. Using these in combination with outside surge protectors gives you a higher level of protection. Surge protectors act like electrical sponges, sopping up excess energy and preventing most of it from reaching your equipment. And like sponges, surge protectors can only absorb so much excess energy. So it's important to choose a surge protector with the appropriate features and ratings to match the equipment you want to protect. Uninterrupted Power Supply (UPS) Systems In an outage, a UPS will quickly switch to backup battery power. UPS are not designed for continuous use over a long period of time. Instead, the ones designed for home use give you about half an hour to save work on your PC and safely shutdown or turn off your sensitive equipment.   Before purchasing any of these systems we suggest you consult with knowledgeable and reputable businesses that can advise you on what would best meet your needs.    Equipment that needs surge protection includes: home appliances personal computers/laptops computer monitors televisions DVD, blu-ray and video game consoles printers copy machines external zip drives/CD ROM drives gas pump controls credit/debit card approval systems cash registers bar code scanners

Energy Supply
Sep 24, 2010  Comment

The Latest on our Carmacks-Stewart Transmission Project

It's been a while since we brought you up to date on the work being done on the Carmacks to Stewart transmission line. Crews are almost finished installing Stage 2 of the line. Valard Construction (the main line construction contractor) and Arctic Power (one of Valard’s partners) have just about completed the work of setting and framing the power poles and stringing the line between Pelly Crossing and Stewart Crossing. They expect to be finished by the end of October. Valard, in partnership with the Northern Tutchone First Nations, is the same company that built the transmission line for Stage 1, which runs from Carmacks to Pelly Crossing. Valard has again partnered with the Northern Tutchone First Nations to complete Stage 2. The other major part of this project involves building or modifying three substations. A new substation is needed at Stewart Crossing to join Yukon Energy’s two transmission systems (the Whitehorse-Aishihik-Faro grid and the Mayo-Dawson grid). Another substation is being built at Pelly Crossing. An existing substation at Minto Landing must be expanded to accommodate the new section of line. Work on the substations has started and should continue until next spring. The entire project is on budget and the line is scheduled to be operating by the beginning of May 2011. The new line will connect Yukon’s two major power grids, giving more flexibility and stability to our transmission system. Photo of crew installing crossbars: www.archbould.com.
Regulatory
Sep 29, 2010  Comment

Striking a Power Deal with Alexco

You might have heard on the news that we have asked the Yukon Utilities Board to approve a Power Purchase Agreement we have reached with Alexco Resources. That's the company that plans to begin mining and milling operations at the old United Keno Hill Mine at Keno next month. You can find the complete application form, including the Power Purchase Agreement, on our web site here. In summary, under the terms of the PPA and pending Utilities Board approval, Alexco will be responsible for the full costs of: Construction of a 1.65 kilometre spur line from Yukon Energy's Mayo-Keno transmission line to the mill site (approximate cost $330-thousand) negotiating and concluding the Power Purchase Agreement, including the regulatory costs (approximately $100-thousand) decommissioning Yukon Energy's spur line once the mill shuts down. In addition, Alexco will pay a fixed charge of almost $7,300 per month for as long as it buys power from Yukon Energy as an industrial customer. The money will help pay the cost of Yukon Energy's existing Mayo-Keno transmission line. Alexco will pay the Industrial power rate set by the Yukon Utilities Board.  The rate is approximately 10.5 cents per kilowatt hour, depending on Alexco’s peak demand.  
News
Sep 30, 2010  Comment

Read All About It

We've just published a newsletter with the latest information about two of our major projects: Mayo B and Stage 2 of the Carmacks-Stewart transmission line. Give it a read and let us know if you have any follow-up questions.
Regulatory
Oct 01, 2010  Comment

Why You Should Care About Next Week’s Utilities Board Hearing

We want to remind you that Yukon Energy and Yukon Electrical Company Ltd. will appear before the Yukon Utilities Board next week. This is a public process and anyone is welcome to attend. Three days have been set aside for the hearing: Tuesday October 5th to Thursday October 7th. It's being held at Yukon College in Whitehorse in Room C1440 starting at 9 a.m. each day. The purpose of the hearing is to allow the Utilities Board to review what is known as a Phase II application. To understand what that is and why it might be important to you, we encourage you to read a blog entry we posted here this past spring.
Energy Conservation
Oct 08, 2010  Comment

How’s Our Lighting?

Streetlights can suck up a lot of power. As part of a pilot project looking into ways of reducing energy consumption, Yukon Energy has installed six Light Emitting Diode (LED) streetlights in Dawson City. LED streetlights need at least 50 percent less energy than regular streetlights and have a longer life span. They are starting to be used in many locations around the world including Alaska and British Columbia. The experimental streetlights in Dawson City have back light shields that significantly reduce light pollution and are approved by the International Dark Sky Association. Research shows that LED lights work well in other places. We need to find out if they are a good lighting option for a community such as Dawson City, which typically has colder and darker winters than locations further south. Our staff installed the LED lights this week on Second Avenue in Dawson between Albert and York streets (just behind the City of Dawson offices). The lights will be monitored throughout the fall and winter for cold weather performance and energy use. If the lights prove to be a good choice for Dawson City, we will look at installing LED streetlights in all our major service areas including Dawson, Mayo and Faro. If you live in Dawson, we'll send you a short questionnaire in the new year after you have had a chance to see the lights in action for a while. Please take a few minutes to fill out the questionnaire and return it to us. If you don't want to do that, you can always call us (1-866-926-3749 or 393-5333), email us at communications@yukonenergy.ca or put a comment on this blog entry. In addition to this pilot project, Yukon Energy is working with Yukon Electrical Company Ltd. and the Yukon government to develop a Demand Side Management (DSM) program. The program will look at a variety of ways to improve generation and transmission efficiencies as well as to reduce energy consumption both by the utilities and by government, industrial, commercial and residential electrical customers. Below are photos of typical streetlighting (first photo) versus LED streetlighting (second photo).

Energy Conservation
Oct 21, 2010  Comment

Electronics Never Sleep

Did you know that even if your electronics are in stand-by or sleep mode, they are sucking up electricity? These so-called energy vampires typically use about five percent of total residential electricity use. Plasma TVs are among the biggest offenders but there are lots of other culprits. For example, on average a DVR consumes more power when it is turned off but still plugged in than when it is actually recording (36.68 watts versus 29.29 watts). Actions as simple as unplugging, using an on/off power bar for clusters of devices and buying Energy Star products (which have lower standby power usage) can help reduce the electrical blood-letting. Here are some examples of electricity vampires: Device and Energy Used (in watts)                                                                                  Game console (ready mode) - 23.34 Desktop Computer (sleep mode) - 21.13 Digital cable set-top box (off by remote) - 17.83 Computer Notebook (sleep mode) - 15.77 Satellite set-top box (off by remote) - 15.66 Audio mini-system (off but still plugged in) - 8.32 Rear projection TV (off by remote) - 6.97 Cell phone charger (on and charged) - 2.24  You can find a more complete and detailed list here.
Billing
Oct 21, 2010  2

How Do Our Rates Compare?

We recently came across a Hydro Quebec publication that provided a comparison of the average electricity costs for customers in major North American cities. While it did not include Yukon, we have added the territory's residential rate on this map. You can see that Yukon residential customers currently pay 11.02 cents per kilowatt hour with the Yukon government's Interim Electrical Rebate (a subsidy provided to all residential customers for the first 1,000 kilowatt hours of electricity used each month). That's the same rate that residents of St. John's pay and is less than that paid by residents in Charlottetown, Moncton, Halifax, Ottawa, Toronto and Calgary. It is much less than what residential customers pay in most major cities in the United States. Without the subsidy, Yukon residential customers would pay 13.68 cents per kilowatt hour of power, which is still less than homeowners or renters in Charlottetown and in most major U.S. cities pay. The complete Hydro Quebec report can be found here.
Reliability
Nov 05, 2010  Comment

Mega Bolts!

Imagine trying to remove a 5,900 kilogram (13,000 pound), 15 meter (50 foot) long bolt from a piece of equipment. Not a job for your average hand-held wrench! But that’s the challenge some of our staff faced recently. There are gates at the Whitehorse dam that move up and down to control the amount of water we spill at any given time. The equipment needed to operate these gates includes a series of gears encased in metal boxes (known as a gear-boxes), and two 15 meter (50 foot) bolts.  After more than 50 years of continuous operation, the bolts needed re-furbishing and the gear boxes had to be replaced. To do this work, we enlisted the help of a large crane. Everything went well, although the lifts taxed the crane to its maximum capacity both in terms of height and weight. In fact, for the lift of the second bolt, two bottom plates had to be removed to reduce the bolt’s length by close to half a meter (18 inches) and reduce the weight by more than 360 kilograms (800 pounds)! The bolts have been shipped down south for refurbishment and we've ordered new gearboxes. The new/refurbished pieces should be installed in a few weeks.
Media Releases
Sep 29, 2010  Comment

Yukon Energy Files Alexco Power Purchase Agreement With Utilities Board

Yukon Energy has asked the Yukon Utilities Board to approve a Power Purchase Agreement (PPA) reached between the energy corporation and Alexco Resources. The agreement is for the supply of electricity to the new mine and mill site at Keno. The PPA also covers any other new mine/mill operation that Alexco develops in the Keno area in the future. Under the terms of the PPA and pending Utilities Board approval, Alexco will be responsible for the full cost of: construction of a 1.65 kilometre spur line from Yukon Energy’s Mayo to Keno transmission line to the mill site (approximate cost $330-thousand). negotiating and concluding the Power Purchase Agreement, including the regulatory costs (approximately $100-thousand). decommissioning of Yukon Energy’s spur line once the mill shuts down. In addition, Alexco will pay a fixed charge of almost $7,300 per month for as long as it purchases power from Yukon Energy as an industrial customer. The money will help pay the costs of Yukon Energy’s existing Mayo-Keno transmission line. Alexco will pay the Industrial power rate set by the Yukon Utilities Board. The rate is approximately 10.5 cents per kilowatt hour, depending on Alexco’s peak demand. Alexco plans to begin mining and milling operations sometime in October. It will require approximately two megawatts of power at any given time. The full application to the Utilities Board, including the Power Purchase Agreement, can be found here. Contact: Janet Patterson Communications Supervisor Yukon Energy Corporation (867) 393-5333  janet.patterson@yec.yk.ca
Media Releases
Oct 08, 2010  Comment

Yukon Energy Launches Energy Efficient Streetlight Pilot Project

How’s our lighting? That’s what Yukon Energy will be asking residents of Dawson City this fall and winter. The energy corporation has installed six Light Emitting Diode (LED) streetlights in Dawson as part of a pilot project looking into energy efficiencies. LED streetlights require at least 50 percent less energy than regular streetlights and have a longer life span. They are starting to be used in many locations around the world including Alaska and British Columbia. The streetlights being used in Dawson City have back light shields that significantly reduce light pollution and are approved by the International Dark Sky Association. “Research shows that LED lights work well in other places. We need to find out if they are a good lighting option for a community such as Dawson City, which typically has colder and darker winters than locations further south,” Yukon Energy spokesperson Janet Patterson said. Yukon Energy staff installed the LED lights this week on Second Avenue in Dawson between Albert and York streets (just behind the City of Dawson offices). The lights will be monitored throughout the fall and winter for cold weather performance and energy use. Yukon Energy is looking for input from Dawson residents regarding the lights. “Residents will be invited to fill out a questionnaire once they’ve had a chance to experience the lights for a few months,” Patterson said. “They can also provide feedback by calling or emailing us, or by posting a comment on our blog.” If the lights prove to be a good choice for Dawson City, Yukon Energy will look at installing LED streetlights in all its major service areas including Dawson, Mayo and Faro. In addition to this pilot project, Yukon Energy is working with Yukon Electrical Company Ltd. and the Yukon government to develop a comprehensive Demand Side Management (DSM) program. The program will look at a variety of ways to improve generation and transmission efficiencies as well as reduce energy consumption both by the utilities and by government, industrial, commercial and residential electrical customers. Contact: Janet Patterson Communications, Yukon Energy Corporation (867) 393-5333 janet.patterson@yec.yk.ca

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