2014 Alaska Rural Energy Conference, Fairbanks, September 23rd -25th, New Tour Options
2014 Alaska Rural Energy Conference
September 23 – 25, 2014
Westmark Fairbanks Hotel & Conference Center
Fairbanks, Alaska
The Alaska Rural Energy Conference Organizing Committee is happy to announce the addition of two half day tours to this year’s Conference agenda.
Tour #1) Aurora Energy | Superior Pellets | Fairbanks Food Bank Micro-turbine
September 22nd, 1pm to 5pm
Tour Fee: $25
Photo: Aurora Energy Power Plant in Fairbanks, Alaska. Photo courtesy Stephen Cysewski, wanderinginfairbanks.blogspot.com.
• Aurora Energy, LLC is a privately owned combined heat and power coal generation plant in downtown Fairbanks. Join this tour to visit the power plant and see the utilidors that connect it to the community under the streets of Fairbanks.
• Superior Pellet Fuels, LLC is an Alaska based company created exclusively to manufacture wood pellets utilizing locally available raw materials.
• The Fairbanks Community Food Bank collects and redistributes donated food to individuals and agencies around the Fairbanks area. In 2013 the Food Bank installed a micro turbine and is now an outstanding example of an urban combined heat and power distributed generation facility.
Tour #2) UAF Power Plant | ACEP’s Energy Technology Facility | Fairbanks Natural Gas
September 22nd, 1pm to 5pm
Tour Fee: $25
Photo: Side view of ACEP’s Energy Technology Facility. Photo courtesy TParis, ACEP/UAF.
• The Atkinson Heat and Power Plant located at the University of Alaska Fairbanks provides electricity, heating, and cooling for about 3 million square feet of academic, research, office, and housing space at the UAF campus primarily utilizing coal and steam. This tour will include the UAF power plant as well as the co-located water treatment facility.
• ACEP's Energy Technology Facility (ETF) houses the Power Systems Integration (PSI) Laboratory and AHERC’s Tanana River Hydrokinetic Test Site staging bay. The ETF is designed to offer a unique testing environment to technology developers, utility managers, and other decision makers. Envisioned as an intermediate step to full commercial deployment, these facilities were carefully designed for a range of testing needs, enabling assessment of product performance based on many real world conditions.
• Fairbanks Natural Gas, LLC is the natural gas utility providing gas service to Fairbanks, Alaska. The company initiated service to its first customer during the spring of 1998. Over 1000 residential and commercial customers now enjoy the benefits of natural gas in Fairbanks. FNG recently announced the intent to expand their LNG storage capacity.
Both tours will depart and return to the Westmark Fairbanks Hotel & Conference Center. PLEASE NOTE: All tours for this year's Conference run concurrently.
Both optional tours are priced at $25 and can be added while you are creating a new registration account or can be added at a later time using your account login information. However, tour space is limited so attendees are encouraged to sign up as soon as possible!
If you have not already registered and would like to attend this year’s Conference, visit www.akruralenergy.org/registration.html.
If you would like to participate in this year’s Conference as a sponsor or a vendor please take a moment to view our sponsorship levels at www.akruralenergy.org/sponsor.html.
Special Note about Conference Accommodations
The Westmark Fairbanks Hotel and Conference Center is offering reduced rates for Alaska Rural Energy Conference attendees. Call the Westmark directly at 1-800-544-0970 and give them the hotel code AREC092814 for discounted rates or book online at http://www.westmarkhotels.com/.
All attendees using the conference code AREC092814 to book a room at the Westmark Fairbanks during the conference will be eligible for a drawing of one free room night at this property. All Westmark Fairbanks rooms come with free Wi-Fi, continental breakfast, and free parking.
Conference rates will expire August 28th, 2014, or when room block is filled. Book your room now and save!
The Westmark’s South Tower has recently undergone renovations and attendees are encouraged to request these beautiful new rooms.
Please feel free to call Max Frey at (907) 474-1143 or email at mefrey@alaska.edu in regards to all questions and comments.
Image: Flyer courtesy of the 2014 Alaska Rural Energy Conference Organizing Committee.