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Reclamation Awards $1.85 Million Contract for Transformer Cooler Replacement at Grand Coulee Dam

Media Contact: Lynne Brougher, (509) 633-9503
Kelly Bridges

For Release: September 05, 2014

BOISE, Idaho – The Bureau of Reclamation awarded a $1.85 million contract on September 2 to ABB, Inc. in Cary, North Carolina, to perform transformer oil cooler replacements at Grand Coulee Dam.

Over the past several years the existing transformer oil coolers have shown the need for replacement. This contract will require furnishing and installing the new transformer oil coolers, as well as disposal of the existing ones. The work is scheduled to be complete by April 30, 2015.

“This project is just one way Reclamation is continuing to ensure efficient and reliable power production in the Pacific Northwest,” said Grand Coulee Power Manager Coleman Smith. “Replacing these transformer oil coolers will help to provide many more years of reliability at Grand Coulee Dam.”

ABB is a global leader in power and automation technologies. ABB is the largest supplier of industrial motors and drives, the largest provider of generators to the wind industry, and the largest supplier of power grids worldwide.

Completed in 1941, Grand Coulee Dam is a key feature of Reclamation’s Columbia Basin Project which provides both power and irrigation. This project serves irrigation to about 671,000 acres in east central Washington with over 300 miles of main canals. Power generated at the project is marketed by the Bonneville Power Administration.

Learn more about Grand Coulee Dam: http://www.usbr.gov/pn/grandcoulee/

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The Bureau of Reclamation is a federal agency under the U.S. Department of the Interior and is the nation's largest wholesale water supplier and second largest producer of hydroelectric power. Our facilities also provide substantial flood control, recreation opportunities, and environmental benefits. Visit our website at https://www.usbr.gov and follow us on Twitter @USBR; Facebook @bureau.of.reclamation; LinkedIn @Bureau of Reclamation; Instagram @bureau_of_reclamation; and YouTube @reclamation.

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