POTSDAM — The village's second hydroelectric plant has received final approvals from the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, and officials hope to break ground on the powerhouse this spring.
"As soon as the weather breaks, we're 98 percent ready to break ground," Administrator Michael D. Weil said.
The lengthy FERC process requires engineering, ecological and financial studies.
The project has been in the pipeline for 15 years. Before that, a plant on the Raquette River was discussed during the energy crisis of the early 1970s.
Now that the west dam powerhouse has been approved, the village will try to complete the plant within the year.
"It took 15 years to come full circle," Mr. Weil said. "We didn't put sticks of dynamite under it or anything to get things going, but we kept plugging away at it. There are a lot of procedures to go through."
The powerhouse design includes two 430-kilowatt generators, which are capable of producing 7.5 million kilowatts of energy per year.
Mr. Weil estimated that, like the east dam plant on the other side of Fall Island, the generators will often run at around 60 percent of capacity.
The plant will be built on village-owned land adjacent to the west dam, next to the former Riverbend Restaurant on Maple Street. It will be housed in a brick building with arched windows and a shingled roof to complement the historic downtown.
Mr. Weil said the second plant will become the main generator of power, while the east dam plant will become secondary.
The site will also feature a canoe launch site and portage trail, as part of the project's recreation plan, also approved by FERC.
"We expect it to be more efficient due to equipment and being on the 'better' side of the river for flow," Mr. Weil said. "The existing plant will run when the river can handle both plants."
The village renovated the west dam in 1990 to accommodate a second plant. It obtained the rights to have the dam licensed by FERC in 2001.
The power produced will be sold on the open market. Because hydroelectric power is considered a renewable energy source, the village is trying to obtain "green" status for the project, which would fetch more per kilowatt-hour, Mr. Weil said.
The village Board of Trustees approved bonding of up to $3.5 million for the west dam plant in May 2007. It has also paid $100,000 in engineering costs from the hydroelectric fund.
James E. Sheehan Contracting Corp. of Potsdam was awarded the $1,456,000 general contract to build the plant, while Canadian Turbines Inc. was awarded a $1,387,432 contract to supply the generators.
An electrical contract has yet to be awarded, while contingency and miscellaneous costs remain.
