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Atmospheric river event

We are prepared for another stormy night. Heavy rain and strong winds started this afternoon and are forecasted into the morning on Wednesday, along with colder temperatures. We’re seeing increased power outages around our service area due to the combination of rain, wind, and saturated and unstable soil.

We understand how hard it is to be without power and that you are depending on us. We encourage our customers to take steps now to be without power.

Today, crews made steady progress restoring power from the previous two storms. We have staged crews throughout our service area and brought in additional crews from outside the area to support restoration efforts. Access to some areas has been difficult; we'll continue working to restore power as long as conditions are safe.

Visit PSE’s Alerts and Advisories page for information on our response efforts: pse.com/alerts.


   
alert 

Safety first. Never touch or go within 35 feet of downed power lines because they might be energized. Call PSE at 1-888-225-5773 or 911 to report problems.

Report and track power outages online

Mint Farm Generating Station

As an important part of Cowlitz County, our Mint Farm Generating Station in Longview not only creates local commerce and family-wage jobs, but also provides substantial tax revenue for local public services. In addition, we support local charitable organizations.

Mint Farm Generating Station facts

The Mint Farm facility came online in January 2008, and was acquired by PSE in December 2008. The plant employs modern, “combustion-turbine, combined-cycle” technology that allows it to generate electricity using both a natural gas cycle and, from the exhaust heat of its power-generating turbine, a steam cycle. The two-stage process boosts operating efficiency, lowers fuel costs, and cuts air emissions.

Combined-cycle plants like Mint Farm operate much more efficiently than simple-cycle gas-fired plants. The latter typically run only to help meet daily or seasonal peaks in customers’ power usage, while combined-cycle plants often operate to help meet utility customers’ base power requirements. They also complement hydro- and wind-powered generation because gas-fired plants can operate on a firm schedule while power generation from hydro and wind-generating facilities is dependent upon the seasons.

  • The Mint Farm Generating Station is the newest of the eight natural gas-fired power-producing plants we own and operate in Washington.
  • The station can produce 310 megawatts of electricity when running at maximum capacity — enough power to meet the annual needs of 220,000 households.
  • The plant uses a combined-cycle combustion turbine technology, a two-stage process that boosts operating efficiency, lowers fuel costs and reduces air emissions.
  • The facility provides 21 full-time jobs.
Mint Farm Generating Station