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Serving Northern St. Louis County, Minnesota

Minnesota Power rededicates Hydroelectric Station

Aloysia Power
Posted 9/13/14

WINTON – Most people only see the Winton Hydroelectric Station on the Kawishiwi River from below on the Kawishiwi Falls trail or from a boat on Fall or Garden lake. But at the Ely Harvest Moon …

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Minnesota Power rededicates Hydroelectric Station

Posted

WINTON – Most people only see the Winton Hydroelectric Station on the Kawishiwi River from below on the Kawishiwi Falls trail or from a boat on Fall or Garden lake. But at the Ely Harvest Moon Festival on Friday, several vans full of people had the unique opportunity to drive to the Winton Station and tour it with Minnesota Power, taking in views of the surrounding lake area from atop the concrete dam and intake manifold as well as from inside the copper-top brick pumping station.

The tour was part of Minnesota Power’s rededication ceremony of the 91-year-old Winton Station. The electric power company is highlighting its recent investments in its 11 Minnesota hydroelectric stations this year with its Hometown Hydro Celebration ceremonies.

The tour highlighted the history of the hydro station, pointing out remnants from its past, including the now green-stained copper roof and several white military guard shacks. Minnesota Power’s CEO, Al Hodnik, said the installation of a copper roof showed how the area’s mining and logging economy was booming at the time of the hydro station’s construction in the early 1920s.

The dam played a significant role in powering the iron ore mines, and because of this, was an important asset to the community, especially during World War II when local iron ore was the nation’s backbone in producing military equipment.

During the great war, the hydro station had military guards on site for protection against potential enemy planes. The windows were also painted black to prevent enemy spies from looking in.

Before 1996, when the operational control was switched from Winton to the Thomson Hydro Station on the St. Louis River near Carlton, the Winton station wasn’t automated and required a full crew of hands to operate.

Hodnik told folks on the tour old stories he’s heard from some of these old-time workers. One such story told of the good times workers would have in the down times catching white -fish out of the pumping station’s window on the Kawishiwi River.

Along with the station tour, Hodnik presented service awards to County Commissioner Mike Forsman, Ely Public Utilities Commission’s Kurt Soderberg, and the Winton Station’s long-time superintendent – now retired – Jack Hautala.

Minnesota Power is reinvesting in its hydropower system as part of its EnergyForward plan, which aims to reduce its carbon emissions by moving toward renewable energy such as hydropower and wind power. Its most notable recent hydropower project was rehabilitating the Thomson Hydro Station after it was severally damaged in the June 2012 flood in southern St. Louis County. The Thomson Station went back into commission in May.

The Winton Station has also undergone recent improvements.

In 2007, Minnesota Power finished replacing the station’s original wooden water-intake pipes with concrete culverts. And last year, the company began replacing the Birch Lake Dam’s wooden dam with concrete. This project is expected to be completed later in the fall.

Together, the Birch Lake Dam and Winton Dam manage the flow of water between the Birch Lake Reservoir, Garden Lake Reservoir and Fall Lake.

The Winton Station utilizes the 67-foot drop of the Kawishiwi Falls to generate four megawatts of power per year for the Iron Range energy grid system and requires about 1,000 cubic feet per second of water to reach full production.

Currently, Minnesota Power engineers are in the designing stage of rebuilding the Winton Station. The project will entail cleaning the station’s two turbine generators and rebuilding the entire mechanical portion to make it more efficient, according to Minnesota Power’s lead hydro engineer, Chris Rousseau. Minnesota Power expects the project to be finished by 2016.