The Goldendale Sentinel, Goldendale, WA., April 13, 1972, page 8
JOHN DAY DAM SETS RECORD
John Day Lock and Dam, the Corps of Engineers' largest
hydroelectric project on the Columbia River, has set new records as the largest
producer of electrical power in the free world.
Colonel Paul D. Triem, Portland U.S. Army district engineer,
said that the John Day powerhouse broke its own record for the highest amount
of power generated in a 24-hour period March 25 when its 16 generating units
produced 59 million kilowatt hours.
Since March 15, John Day has been generating an average
of more than 56.6 million kilowatt-hours of electricity each
day.
Colonel Triem said that John Day's peak daily generation
was equal to more than 20 per cent of the total amount of power produced
during the Northwest's peak day of power production. On that day, January
27, 1972, the Federal Columbia River Power System generated 248,681,000
kilowathhours of power at 26 dams and at the Hanford, Centralia and Packwood
power plants.
During John Day's peak power production, Columbia River
flows at the project averaged about 366,900 cubic feet per second, Colonel
Them said. Ninety per cent of this water flowed through the powerhouse to
generate the power.
John Day Lock and Dam has the highest generating capacity
of any single hydroelectric powerhouse in the free world. Its rated capacity
is 2,160,000 kilowatts, compared to Grand Coulee Dam's rated capacity of
2,110,000 kilowatts. Several Russian power plants are reportedly
larger.
During periods of heavy power demand, John Day's powerhouse
can overload to produce up to 2,484,000 kilowatts. Its recent peak production
on March 25 averaged 2,460,000 kilowatts.
The John Day powerhouse has space for the future installation
of four additional generating units, which would raise the project's total
overload capacity to 3,105,000 kilowatts.
Project Engineer for both John Day and The Dalles Lock
and Dam is David H. Larsen.
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© Jeffrey L. Elmer