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Power Supply
Clarksville Connected (CCU) has three power suppliers, the Oklahoma Municipal Power Authority, the Southwestern Power Administration, and Independence County. Both Southwestern Power Administration and Independence County power sources are 100% renewable energy, primarily from hydroelectric power plants. Oklahoma Municipal Power Authority has a portfolio of power supply sources of which some are contracts and some are from assets the agency owns. The supply mix of OMPA includes traditional fossil fuel plants and it also has renewable sources such as hydroelectric, wind and landfill gas. The largest fuel source for OMPA is natural gas rather than coal.
Oklahoma Municipal Power Authority (OMPA):
- Clarksville Connected’s largest power provider. Oklahoma Municipal Power Authority is a political subdivision of the state of Oklahoma, and is owned by the members it serves, including 41 municipal electrics in Oklahoma. In addition to the purchase of energy, OMPA provides ancillary services to CCU by scheduling, tagging, balancing, and performing other tasks in accordance with the Southwest Power Pool (SPP) transmission and generation requirements. OMPA is a joint action agency formed by the Oklahoma legislature in 1981 specifically to provide power for municipal utilities across Oklahoma. Clarksville and Paris, Arkansas are OMPA’s only Arkansas customers. Joint action allows for the collective resources to be pooled related to generation facilities and power contracts to the benefit of individual members.
Southwestern Power Administration (SWPA):
- Clarksville Connected (CCU) receives hydro peaking power and supplemental energy from the Southwestern Power Administration (SWPA) which was established in 1943. SWPA schedules and produces power through dams owned and maintained by the Corps of Engineers. CCU was among the early SWPA customers dating back to the late 1940’s. SWPA provides not-for-profit rates to over 100 municipal and cooperative utilities in six states. It operates and maintains 24 project sites and 1,380 miles of high-voltage transmission lines, substations, and a communications system that includes microwave, VHF radio, and state-of-the-art fiber optics. The primary generation focus for SWPA projects is peak demand.
Independence County:
- Clarksville Connected is also furnished power from Independence County which provides power through three small run of the river hydroelectric generating plants constructed on the White River near Batesville, Arkansas. While the target output is 12 megawatts, that capacity is never achieved. The project actually generates between 7 ½ megawatts and 9 megawatts maximum. The project is connected to the SWPA transmission grid.