HAWKS NEST — Representatives from West Virginia Alloys told members of the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) on Wednesday night that losing any power from the Hawks Nest Hydro plant would directly impact their ability to operate a silicon alloy manufacturing facility in Fayette County.

“Every cubic foot of water that goes over the (Hawks Nest Dam) spillway and not into production at the hydro plant adds to the production cost of the facility...which could have a severe impact on operations,” says Russ Lang, corporate energy manager for Globe Metallurgical, which owns West Virginia Alloys.

FERC hosted a meeting at Hawks Nest State Park to field public comments on the relicensing of the Hawks Nest Hydro project, which is currently operated by Brookfield Renewable Energy and which provides power to the alloy plant.

During that process, the agency will consider many factors, including whether to change the flows through the dam--currently set at a minimum of 100 cfs--into a low-water area known as The Dries, which stretches 5.5 miles between the dam and the hydro plant near Gauley Bridge.

The first step is a series of studies over the next several years, and FERC is now seeking comment on information gaps that need to be filled. Comments are due by Nov. 21.

West Virginia Professional River Outfitters (WVPRO) is requesting that Brookfield--in conjunction with the West Virginia Department of Natural Resources and the National Parks Service--conduct a more detailed study than currently proposed on allowing more water into The Dries for commercial rafting, fishing, and other recreational activities.

“Although no numbers (are) exact and need study, diverting water from the hydro tunnel for six to eight hours a day and three to five days a week could restore the bypass for the future,” the group states.

But on Wednesday, West Virginia Alloys made clear their position that any water released from the dam translates into lost production.

“We take every killowatt that’s generated from Brookfield,” says plant manager Steven Pralley. “If you dump 30 megawatts of power over the dam for three months of the year, we’ll be completely shut down.”

Two of the five smelting furnaces at Alloy are unique in the world in that they require power at a frequency of 25 Hz. The others run off 60 Hz or a combination of both 25 Hz and 60 Hz.

The Hawks Nest Dam and its hydro infrastructure were designed and built by Union Carbide in the 1930s specifically to supply power to the Alloy plant.

“We are very much tied together,” says Dave Barnhart director of Mid Atlantic operations for Brookfield. “Whatever one does effects the other in either direction.”

In addition to the two smelters, water pumps, air compressors, cranes, and other equipment run on the 25 Hz power. The company buys 60-Hz power from the grid as well.

The plant operates best, says Pralley, when the hydro plant has plenty of water--from November through April.

As it is, he says he sometimes struggles during the low-water summer months to maintain enough 25-Hz power to keep the smelters in operation, meaning there’s no extra water to spare recreational paddlers.

“As the river flow declines and their (Brookfield’s) ability to produce declines, there are days when we actually suffer load and production losses because we don’t have enough power,” says Pralley.

The Alloy plant employs 250 full-time workers with an annual payroll of $13 million, according to Lang.

Fred Sizemore, president of the United Steelworkers of America local in Alloy, provided comments at the meeting, emphasizing “how important it is for that water to continue to flow through that hydro plant for sustaining jobs in Fayette County.”

Brookfield’s annual payroll for its hydro projects in Fayette County is $2.5 million and it spends $1 million of product from local suppliers, according to Barnhart.

Nic Spruill, a local climber, also commented in favor of keeping The Dries dry.

“There’s no place like The Dries as far as rock climbing is concerned,” he says. “Right now, 100 cfs is perfect for what we need.”

A group of approximately 20 people participated in a tour of the hydro facilities by Barnhart on Wednesday morning, another component of the FERC scoping process. They included representatives from the National Parks Service, WVPRO, West Virginia Alloy, the National Parks Conservation Association, Brookfield consultants, Fayette County Commission, and others.

Today at 9 a.m. at Hawks Nest State Park Lodge, another public scoping meeting will focus on resource agency, Indian tribes, and non-governmental organization concerns.

At that meeting, the groups representing the whitewater industry and environmental concerns will make their case for why a study should be done on the impacts of diverting some of the water into The Dries.

—Email: cmoore@register-herald.com