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    "slug": "anchorage-eyes-new-hydropower",
    "headline": "Anchorage eyes new hydropower",
    "deck": "Chugach Electric is exploring four potential hydropower projects as Southcentral Alaska grapples with a natural gas supply crunch.",
    "url": "https://thedailyalaska.com/story/anchorage-eyes-new-hydropower",
    "section": "Energy",
    "area": "Anchorage",
    "published_at": "2026-02-28T20:00:00+00:00",
    "updated_at": "2026-10-01T05:22:40.998448+00:00",
    "body_md": "Chugach Electric, the utility serving much of Southcentral Alaska including Anchorage, is exploring four new hydropower projects as the region faces a looming natural gas shortage. The utility is examining water power as a long term backup option to help keep the lights on in the Anchorage area and across the Railbelt.\n\nMost of Anchorage's electricity currently comes from natural gas drawn from Cook Inlet. Supply concerns around that gas have pushed utility planners to look harder at renewable options capable of producing steady power year round, rather than relying on a single fuel source.\n\nHydropower is one of the few local resources that can scale up without importing fuel from outside the region. If even one of Chugach Electric's four projects moves forward, it could change how Anchorage powers homes and businesses over the next decade.\n\nFor residents, the push toward hydropower is about keeping energy stable and reliable. For developers and large energy users in Southcentral Alaska, it is about long term certainty in a tightening energy market, as decisions made now will shape the regional grid for years to come.",
    "sources": [
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    "slug": "anchorage-eyes-new-hydropower",
    "summary": "Chugach Electric is exploring four new hydropower projects to address a looming natural gas shortage in Southcentral Alaska. Anchorage currently relies heavily on natural gas for electricity, and the utility is studying hydropower as a renewable, locally produced backup option.",
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      "Anchorage currently depends on Cook Inlet gas for electricity generation."
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        "claim": "Most of Anchorage's power currently comes from natural gas.",
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        "name": "Cook Inlet"
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    "disclosure": "Produced with AI assistance, narrated with Slav Lund's voice clone with his consent, and reviewed by a person before publishing.",
    "generated_at": "2026-10-01T05:22:40.95+00:00",
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