Hydropower

Wanapum Dam | Priest Rapids Dam | Small Hydros | Advanced Turbines

Hydroelectric power is electrical energy produced by converting the gravitational kinetic force of falling or flowing water into electricity.  Approximately 12 percent of all electricity produced in the United States comes from hydropower.  In the Pacific Northwest, 80 percent of our electricity comes from clean, renewable hydroelectric generation.

Grant PUD is fortunate to operate two large hydroelectric power plants on the Columbia River, Priest Rapids and Wanapum dams.  These two facilities make up the Priest Rapids Project, federally licensed by the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC).

Priest Rapids Dam has 10 generating units with a total capacity of 855 megawatts.  The annual generation of Priest Rapids Dam is 3,885,193 megawatt-hours. The facility went on line in October 1959 and produced its first commercial generation in September 1963.

Wanapum Dam has 10 generating units with a total capacity of 1,038 megawatts. The annual generation of Wanapum Dam is 4,610,894 megawatt-hours. The facility went on line in September 1963.