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NEWPORT – The PUD and Clark County PUD contracted for Clark to buy all the power produced at the PUD’s Box Canyon Dam, about 50 megawatt hours a year. The 16-year contract starts in 2026 and continues through 2041. PUD commissioners voted to do that in October 2022. The cryptocurrency producer Cascade Digital Mining vigorously objected to the sale, which went through despite its objections. Cascade maintained that the power was required for Pend Oreille County businesses.
While Cascade Digital buys significant amounts of power, most on the open market, commissioners and staff at the time were concerned about securing a long-term contract. Due to the volatile nature of cryptocurrency production, Cascade wanted shorter term contracts.
Currently, the PUD sells power to Shell Energy, including power it gets from Boundary Dam and power it produces itself. It then buys back what it needs at cost, a five-year deal that concludes at the end of 2026.
The reason for the contracts was that the PUD had substantially more power than it could use because of the bankruptcy of its biggest customer, Ponderay Newsprint Company, which bought 70% of the PUD’s power. PNC closed in June 2020. Because of costs associated with renewing the dam’s Federal Energy Regulatory Commission license, Box Canyon Dam power was often selling for less than it cost to produce.
