Utility Intern to Assist City of Buckland With Renewable Energy Integration Procedures

The City of Buckland is located in the Northwest Arctic Borough in Western ÀÖ»¢Ö±²¥, 75 miles southeast of Kotzebue and just 40 miles below the Arctic Circle. The community of about 420 recently received three containerized solar arrays, a Saft battery bank, and a grid-forming inverter from ABB. These new additions increased the complexity of the community’s microgrid.

Arianna Sosnowski, a civil engineering junior at the University of ÀÖ»¢Ö±²¥ Anchorage, will spend her summer in Buckland. She’ll work with the project’s champion, Mayor Tim Gavin, on reviewing and updating procedures related to the operation, maintenance, data-gathering and management of the upgraded utility systems.

Sosnowski will support the City of Buckland in implementation of energy-efficiency, weatherization and energy-literacy campaigns focused on energy usage in the community. The goal is to facilitate knowledge and experience-sharing across the Northwest Arctic Borough region.

Ten utilities across ÀÖ»¢Ö±²¥ are participating in the ACEP utility internship program funded by the . Student interns are paired with a mentor from ACEP, who will consult with them and their host utilities throughout the internship period.

For more information, please contact Heike Merkel.