Who We Are

  • Kotzebue Electric Association (KEA) is a non-profit, electric cooperative located in Kotzebue, Alaska
  • Approximately 875 members
  • KEA is governed by a 9-member board of directors
  • Board members are elected by the cooperative membership
  • The KEA Board of Directors establishes the goals and priorities of the cooperative
  • The Board of Directors has been instrumental in KEA’s adoption of renewable energy sources

Our Home

  • Kotzebue is the largest of 12 communities in Northwest Alaska
  • Situated along the Chukchi Sea above the Bering Strait, it is home to many of the lnupiaq people
  • Northwest Alaska is about the size of Indiana
  • There are no roads or transmission lines connecting Kotzebue to other communities or the rest of Alaska
  • The Kotzebue Sound is frozen for about 9 months of the year and wind chill can fall to minus 120º Fahrenheit
  • Fuel is delivered annually by barge during the summer months

Electricity in Kotzebue

  • Like most remote communities, Kotzebue originally relied exclusively on diesel generation to produce electricity
  • Producing electricity using diesel generation is expensive
  • Electricity in Alaska’s villages often costs more than 4 times the national average
  • In Kotzebue it now costs only twice the national average

Our Mission

  • To provide reliable and affordable electricity to our members
  • KEA is committed to lowering the cost of electricity by developing renewable energy from:
    • Our wind farm
    • Integrating the use of solar energy
    • Initiating energy efficiency programs
  • The use of wind and solar energy helps stabilize and reduce energy costs in our community

Wind Energy

  • Kotzebue is a Class 3 wind resource
  • The average annual wind speed at the wind farm is 14.1 miles per hour
  • The flat tundra allows the wind to blow close to its full force, without obstruction by trees or mountains
  • All of these factors make Kotzebue an ideal location for the use of wind energy

Solar Energy

  • During the summer months the sun shines 24 hours per day
  • Even in the winter solar energy is feasible as an energy source