East Kentucky Power Cooperative has informed the Kentucky Public Service Commission of its plans to proceed with construction of a water-cooling tower at Cooper Station. The cooling tower will help to ensure that the power plant remains fully operational regardless of changes in Lake Cumberland’s elevation as repairs are made to Wolf Creek Dam. Earlier this year, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers lowered Lake Cumberland to about 680 feet above sea level in order to make dam repairs, and told water users to be prepared by the end of 2007 for the lake to be lowered an additional 30 feet. Lake levels this summer were a few feet above Cooper Station’s existing water intakes and resulting water temperatures were much warmer than normal because the water came from closer to the lake surface. Because the warmer water was less efficient for cooling purposes, EKPC frequently was unable to run power generation units at full capacity during the summer. The cooling tower and barge-mounted pumps should address this situation.
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