North Unit irrigation district outlines hydroelectric ‘microgrid’ to power Redmond-area critical sites

North Unit Irrigation District officials told the Redmond City Council they are pursuing a hydroelectric resilience project that would pipe a section of the district’s main canal and pair it with solar and battery storage to create a localized microgrid capable of powering critical facilities during large outages.

Mike Britton, executive manager of North Unit Irrigation District, said feasibility work shows the canal’s hydro potential can “meet the critical needs of the community,” and that partners including Farmers Conservation Alliance and engineering firms are working on design and permitting. He said grant and subsidy programs from the Oregon Department of Energy, Energy Trust of Oregon and federal programs — including technical support from Idaho National Labs and the Department of Energy — have been involved in early project development.

The project would pipe a six- to eight-thousand-foot section of main canal near Highway 26, site a powerhouse there and enable power delivery to nearby pump stations, the airport, the proposed National Guard training facility and other city and county facilities, presenters said. Britton said the plan would also pipe and modernize canal sections to reduce seepage and create an ongoing revenue stream that could help the irrigation district cover operating costs.

Councilors asked technical questions about including the fairgrounds and how the system would work outside the irrigation season. Britton estimated it would take “about 12 hours” to move water from the diversion point to the powerhouse once diversion begins. On winter or off-season events, presenters said they plan to seek a secondary-use hydro water right through the Oregon Water Resources Department and that emergency state authority could also be used in extreme circumstances.

Project partners said the microgrid will also include batteries and solar to cover critical loads until hydroelectric generation can be brought online. Keith Kimmy of Farmers Conservation Alliance described iron-flow battery technology under consideration and said the team has identified storage-and-solar combinations that could bridge the 12–24 hour startup window for the hydro plant.

Presenters emphasized the project is informational at this stage: design is roughly 50% complete, a boatload of permits and interconnection issues remain, and the group plans further outreach and a Public Utility Commission convened work group to tackle regulatory questions. “There’s a lot of interest and energy around these types of projects,” Britton said, noting that partnership and federal funding will be important to make the economics work.

The council received the presentation and engaged presenters in follow-up questions; no formal council action was requested at the meeting.