What fuels your electricity?

When you flip on your light switch, do you ever wonder where that energy comes from? As an Avista customer, that electricity comes from a variety of sources.

Today, the amount of electricity needed can’t be stored in large quantities, which means it’s generated as you use it.

Some utilities rely on a single fuel to make electricity. To serve customers, our goal is to balance reliability with renewable energy while managing costs for customers. So we’ve created options.

What generation sources serve Avista customers?

• Hydropower makes up roughly half of our resource mix. It’s clean and inexpensive. If we have a dry winter with limited snowpack, though, there may not be enough water in the spring and summer months to provide the energy our customers need.
• Wind is a good option, but because it doesn’t always blow, it’s not dependable.
• Natural gas provides a much more consistent supply. It’s also one of the most abundant resources available.
• The biomass plant in Kettle Falls uses wood waste from sawmills to generate electricity, making it one of our renewable resources.
• Coal provides a stable energy source and a stable price. While less than 10 percent of our generating capacity comes from coal, it's a critical resource.

By enabling us to choose the appropriate resources at any given time, a diverse energy mix helps balance reliability, the environment and the price customers pay for the energy they use now, and into the future.