Electric department updates: generator and hydro repairs, substation plans and staffing challenges

Utility staff provided an extensive operations update covering maintenance, capital replacements and staffing.

Shane, a utilities staff member, reported progress on hydro and generator work, including a gearbox replacement planned for a 1939 hydro unit and shipment of a component called a “speed increaser” for Unit 4. Shane said the department expects a Basler control upgrade (a “2 50 plus” unit) to be installed and tested the week of May 6 and that a Basler technician would visit to support installation.

Shane said staff were reviewing options for a new substation site and coordinating dual-circuit routing with Fairview; he said he is negotiating property and ordering long-lead items for transmission. He also said the department is targeting upcoming grant rounds for hydros and substations and reviewing a fire-mitigation plan to reduce insurance costs.

Staff described fleet and equipment constraints: certain trucks older than 2001 (company-standard dielectric test cutoff) cannot be used for live-line work and some neighboring cities own similarly aged trucks. Shane said the department is working with contractors (Deseret, etc.) and may share crews across jurisdictions to address staffing shortfalls and to give apprentices broader experience. He identified one apprentice, Gavin, as attending school on Wednesdays and preparing for a third-year test.

Shane also described market arrangements for surplus power and ongoing solar performance issues; Sunnyside and Hunter generation sites were described as operating well. He said the utility is reorganizing allocation and pricing and tracking power cost adjustments.

No formal council action or vote was recorded on the utility items during the work session. Staff said some capital timelines depend on ordered equipment and external contractors and that final budgets and grant applications will be brought forward during budget deliberations.