Cordova Electric's Clay Koplin inducted into Alaska Innovators Hall of Fame for microgrids

The University of Alaska Fairbanks' Office of Intellectual Property and Commercialization honored Clay Koplin, chief executive of Cordova Electric Cooperative and a UAF doctoral student, at a September Innovation Celebration for advancing microgrid innovation in Cordova. Koplin was recognized as an Alaska Innovators Hall of Fame recipient for the 2023-2026 period.

Cordova's power system is an isolated grid with no connection to the rest of Alaska's electrical network. Two run-of-river hydropower plants on Power Creek and Humpback Creek supply 70% to 80% of the town's electricity, with diesel generation covering the rest, according to a U.S. Department of Energy account. The cooperative serves 1,566 members on an 18-megawatt system.

In a 2021 report to members, Koplin wrote that the Power Creek plant alone produces two-thirds of the cooperative's electricity, anchors its other renewable sources and had saved about 19 million gallons of diesel since 2002.

Others honored at the celebration included Mary Beth Leigh, for public engagement with climate and environmental science; Doug Goering, for sustainable energy innovation; and Billy Conner, dean of the College of Engineering and Mines, for structured insulation that prevents permafrost thaw.

Koplin joined Cordova Electric in 1998 and became CEO in 2007. As Alaska News reported Sept. 3, he will become chief executive of Matanuska Electric Association on Jan. 7, 2027, succeeding the retiring Tony Izzo. MEA serves approximately 58,000 members through 73,000 meters across Southcentral Alaska.