Sign in Subscribe
United States. Federal Energy Regulatory Commission

Temporary Modification of Minimum Flow at Smith Dam

Strategic Insights

— 1 min read

The Alabama Power Company has submitted a document to the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) detailing temporary modifications to the minimum flow at the Smith Dam, as required by Article 407 of the Warrior River Hydroelectric Project license. The modifications were due to operating emergencies and equipment malfunctions, resulting in temporary deviations from the required minimum flow. The company has taken corrective actions to address the issues and ensure compliance with the license requirements.

Key Takeaways:

  • The Alabama Power Company operates the Smith Development of the Warrior River Hydroelectric Project under License No. 2165, issued by the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC).
  • Article 407 of the Project license requires a minimum flow of approximately 50 cubic feet per second (cfs) from the Smith dam during periods of non-generation.
  • The minimum flow was temporarily modified due to operating emergencies and equipment malfunctions, resulting in deviations from the required minimum flow.
  • The company received multiple alarms through the Hydro Optimization Management System (HOMS) indicating that the "B" valve on Unit 2 was closing intermittently, despite being visually inspected as open.
  • A technician from the valve manufacturer identified a communication error caused by a faulty transformer inside the actuator, which was promptly replaced.
  • The temporary deviation from the required minimum flow on August 6, 2025, lasted for approximately 2 hours and 27 minutes, with no observed environmental effects.
  • A separate incident occurred on August 9, 2025, where the tailrace elevation was at or below 256.2 feet mean sea level (msl) during non-generation, and the minimum flow was not provided due to a dead raccoon causing a power outage.
  • There were no observed environmental effects during either incident.

Statistics:

  • The minimum flow of approximately 50 cfs was temporarily modified due to operating emergencies and equipment malfunctions.
  • The deviation from the required minimum flow on August 6, 2025, lasted for approximately 2 hours and 27 minutes.
  • The deviation from the required minimum flow on August 9, 2025, lasted for approximately 2 hours and 19 minutes.
  • No environmental effects were observed during either incident.

Sources:

  • Alabama Power Company. (2025, August 15). Temporary Modification of Minimum Flow at Smith Dam. FERC. (Accession No. 20250815-5263)
  • The Hydro Optimization Management System (HOMS) is described in the Project Operations and Flow Monitoring Plan required by Article 409 of the Warrior River Project license (133 FERC P 62,117)
  • The complete document can be viewed at https://elibrary.ferc.gov

Read more