ANDERSON RANCH POWERPLANT
Anderson Ranch Dam and Powerplant
| Plant Contact: | Coleman Smith, O&M Technical Services Manager, SRAO West |
| Telephone Numbers: | Phone: (208)
383-2266 Fax: (208) 383-2275 |
| E-Mail Address: | csmith@pn.usbr.gov |
| Reclamation Region: | Pacific Northwest Region |
| NERC Region: | Western Electricity Coordinating Council, Northwest Power Pool Area |
| PMA Service Area: | Bonneville Power Administration, Southern Idaho Power System |
| Project Authorization: | Construction of the original Boise Project was authorized on March 27, 1905. The Secretary of the Interior authorized Anderson Ranch Dam and Reservoir on August 12, 1940, under the Reclamation Project Act of 1939 (53 Stat. 1187). |
| Project Purposes: | The Boise Project furnishes irrigation water to about 225,000 acres of project lands and 165,000 acres under special and Warren Act contracts. The irrigable lands are in southwestern Idaho and eastern Oregon. The Arrowrock Division consists of 164,680 irrigable acres, with supplemental water to an additional 111,115 acres. Water for the division is stored in Anderson Ranch Reservoir on the South Fork of the Boise River; Arrowrock Reservoir on the Boise River; and in Lake Lowell, an off-stream lake in a large depression. Anderson Ranch Dam, the uppermost storage facility on the Boise system, is located 42 miles upstream from Arrowrock Dam. |
| Project History: | Agricultural activity in the Boise and Payette Valleys started in the early 1880's when settlers began filing on desert lands under private irrigation enterprises. By 1900, about 148,000 acres had been placed under irrigation. It quickly became evident that storage and distribution systems were needed for a dependable water source to serve the lands at high elevations. In response to petitions by local irrigators, the Boise Project was initiated by the Reclamation Service shortly after the passage of the first Reclamation Act of 1902. |
| Plant Facts: | Located in a remote area, the powerplant has been remotely operated from the Black Canyon control center since 1984. The dam is 456 feet high (the world's highest earthfill dam at the time of its completion in 1950), and has a total storage capacity of 493,200 acre-feet. The powerplant originally had a rated capacity of 27,000 kilowatts with two units installed. In 1981, both generators were rewound and modernized to an increased capacity of 20,000 kilowatts each. |
| Plant Purpose: | Anderson Ranch Dam and Powerplant is a multiple-purpose structure that provides benefits in irrigation, power, and flood and silt control. The plant supplies power to irrigation loads in the Boise, Owyhee, and Minidoka Projects as part of Reclamation's Southern Idaho Power System. Surplus power is delivered to the BPA for marketing and distribution to regional industries and municipalities. |
| Present Activity: | The original power transformers and cables were replaced in Jan-Feb 2001. The switchyard oil circuit breakers were replaced in Sept-Oct 2002, completing the modernization of the power plant switchyard. The powerplant crane was modernized in April 2001 the fire suppression system replaced in 2004 and Life Safety Code Phase I improvements completed in 2000 and 2003. |
| Future Planned Activities: | Plant relaying will be replaced by the end of 2005. Scheduled work includes replacement of the excitation equipment and electrical transducers. Investigation is underway to determine a schedule for overhaul or replacement of the original turbines. |
| Special Issues: | The upper Boise River system is a renowned game trout fishery and has been proposed as critical habitat for bull trout, a threatened species under the Endangered Species Act. |
| River: | South Fork of Boise River |
| Plant Type: | Conventional |
| Powerhouse Type: | Above Ground |
| Turbine Type: | Francis |
| Original nameplate capacity: | 27,000 kW |
| Installed capacity: | 40,000 kW |
| Year of initial operation: | 1950 |
| Age: | 55 years |
| Net Generation: (FY 2005) |
91,164,540 kWh |
| Rated head: | 329 feet |
| Plant Factor: (FY 2005) |
26.32 percent |
| Remotely Operated: | Yes |
| Production Mode: | Intermediate |
Click here for graphs and charts of Anderson Ranch Powerplant performance.
Click here for information on Anderson Ranch Dam
Click here for information on the Boise Project.
Revised December 22, 2005 Hydropower Site Map Help