Utility Operations Department.

Director of Utility Operations: Bill Hudson

Reports to Edwin Porter, Executive Director of Infrastructure

National Hydropower Association presents Clean Currents 2023

The National Hydropower Association is a nonprofit trade association dedicated to promoting the growth of clean, affordable U.S. waterpower in all of its forms, ranging from conventional hydropower to pumped storage to marine energy. It seeks to secure waterpower’s place as a climate-friendly, renewable, and reliable energy source that serves national environmental, energy, and economic policy objectives.

The City of Hamilton is jointly hosting the National Hydropower Association's Clean Currents 2023 conference in Cincinnati on October 10-13, 2023. The other hosts are AMP and Duke Energy. As a part of the conference, there will be a tour (for registered attendees only) of the Meldahl Hydroelectric Facility located in Foster, KY and an Americana Tour of the Hamilton Hydroelectric Plant, which is located right here in Hamilton. The City of Hamilton owns and operates three hydroelectric plants which provide power for our local community.

Department Mission

The Utility Operations Department enhances the life of our community by providing reliable, competitively-priced, and environmentally responsible electric service to our customer-owners. We strive to deliver safe and reliable natural gas, water, and wastewater services at affordable rates with exceptional customer service. Integral parts of our mission are maintaining the long-term financial strength of our utilities, promoting environmental stewardship, fostering economic development, and providing a safe and rewarding work environment.

Department Description

The Utility Operations Department is responsible for Hamilton’s fully integrated municipal electric system providing generation, transmission, and distribution services to Hamilton residential, commercial, and industrial customers; and for the operations and maintenance of the Wastewater Collection System, Wastewater Treatment Plant, Water Treatment Plant, and Water System. We invest in electric power produced from clean coal energy, advanced combined cycle natural gas generation, and four hydroelectric facilities. The department also provides hydroelectric power to 48 municipal electric systems in six states.

The Wastewater and Water Systems operate under the permission of the Ohio Environmental Protection Agency and must comply with all state and federal rules and regulations. The provision of these services requires a vast amount of capital infrastructure, which must be properly operated and maintained to ensure a high level of service to our customers. The extensive infrastructure requires regular and timely maintenance to ensure facilities remain dependable and to protect the significant financial investment by the utility customers of the City.

The City diligently protects raw water reserves, allowing us to provide the highest quality finished water product to City of Hamilton residents as well as customers outside of the city. In keeping with our commitment to quality, the City is a charter member of the Hamilton to New Baltimore Groundwater Consortium (Consortium). The Consortium consists of five area water producers and one industrial manufacturer: City of Hamilton, City of Fairfield, Greater Cincinnati Water Works, Southwest Regional Water District, Southwest Ohio Water Association, and Miller-Coors. Butler County Water and Sewer Department purchases water from three of the five area water producers but is not listed as a member of the Consortium. The Consortium is managed by a full-time coordinator who oversees its general operations, including groundwater monitoring, mapping of underground water reserves, potential pollution source inventories, and public education.

The Utility Operations Department is comprised of eight divisions: Administration, Electric Transmission & Distribution, Electric Metering, Electric Production, Greenup Hydroelectric Plant, Meldahl Hydroelectric Plant, Water Production, and Water Reclamation.

Administration Division

The Administration Division oversees the Department of Utility Operations.

Electric Transmission & Distribution Division

The Electric Transmission & Distribution (T&D) Division is responsible for the operation and maintenance of the City’s electric transmission and distribution systems, including 14 substations and the central business district underground network. The division maintains electric equipment at the Hamilton Power Plant, Hamilton Hydroelectric Plant, Greenup Hydroelectric Plant, and Meldahl Hydroelectric Plant. Electric T&D also generates electricity for delivery to Hamilton residents and businesses.

Electric Metering Division

The Electric Metering Division manages and repairs electric meters across the City.

Electric Production Division

The Electric Production Division generates electricity for delivery to Hamilton residents and businesses. The Hamilton Power Plant consists of a natural gas-fired combustion turbine rated at 12 MW and the Hamilton Hydroelectric Plant, with two 970-kilowatt (kW) generators. The Hamilton Hydroelectric Plant is located on the Ford Canal east of the Hamilton Power Plant.

Greenup Hydroelectric Plant

The Greenup Hydroelectric Plant is a 70.2-MW hydroelectric facility located 15 miles upstream of Portsmouth on the Ohio River. Hamilton transferred a 48.6% ownership interest in the Greenup Hydroelectric Plant to American Municipal Power (AMP), Inc. when the Meldahl Hydroelectric Plant entered commercial operation in the spring of 2016. Hamilton continues to own 51.4% of Greenup and operates and maintains the Greenup Hydroelectric Plant.

Meldahl Hydroelectric Plant

The Meldahl Hydroelectric Plant is a 105-MW facility in Willow Grove, Kentucky. The City operates and maintains the Meldahl Hydroelectric Plant under a joint ownership agreement with AMP. Hamilton receives 51.4% of the project output, with participating AMP members receiving the remaining 48.6%.

Water Production Division

The Water Production Division seeks to provide a plentiful, aesthetically pleasing drinking water source for the City of Hamilton and our extended customers while maintaining compliance with all federal, state, and local regulations. The Division softens the water using lime, stabilizes with carbon dioxide, then filters, disinfects, and fluoridates water from the Great Miami Buried Valley Aquifer for distribution to the City’s customers. The South Water Treatment Plant is a 40 million gallon per day (MGD) lime softening plant with 16 production wells located throughout City of Fairfield. The North Water Treatment Plant is a 6 MGD lime softening plant with five production wells located onsite. Each production well can produce anywhere from 3 to 4 MGD.

Water Reclamation Division

The Water Reclamation Division operates the Water Reclamation Facility, one satellite wastewater plant, seven wastewater pump stations, and one storm water pump station. The Water Reclamation Facility returns an average of 8.5 million gallons of clean water to the Great Miami River each day. Up to 48 million gallons per day can enter the plant during a severe storm event. Improvements are being made to the facility and the City’s large interceptor sewer to enable treatment of the entire quantity. About six dry tons of solids are removed from the wastewater stream daily and reused to benefit the environment.