The report, “Sustainable Energy Solutions for Rural Alaska,” provides recommendations from a study conducted over the course of 18 months that involved in-person interviews with utility staff and community members from more than 30 Alaska rural communities. The purpose of the study was to understand the current challenges and identify opportunities for rural Alaska utilities to move toward a more sustainable future. The report examines reliability, capital and strategic planning, management, workforce development, governance, financial performance, and system efficiency in the various Alaskan communities visited by the research team. The report was sponsored by the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Office of Indian Energy and authored by researchers from the Regulatory Assistance Project and DOE’s Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory.
Key recommendations from the report include:
- Encouraging rural utilities and communities to achieve economies of scale.
- Increasing the role of independent power producers and other third-party service providers.
- Encouraging investment in rural workforce development.
- Improving accountability and aligning financial incentives with performance.
The report also suggests accelerating the testing and adoption of emerging technologies in Alaska, strengthening the commitment to energy efficiency, and enhancing the role for cost-effective renewable energy to help communities lower costs and increase self-sufficiency.
Download the full report below.