With a whopping $5,393,784 in savings and avoided costs, the most ever achieved by a USA member in a single year, Wolf Creek Nuclear Operating Company (WCNOC) won the coveted Optimizer Award for the third time since the award’s inception. “Any investment that returns $41.09 for every $1 invested in one year is pretty much a no-brainer,” stated USA President and CEO Carl Parry when presenting the award. “That’s how much Wolf Creek saved for each dollar it spent associated with its cost of membership in USA during 2011.”

The award is a testament to the dedication of Wolf Creek employees to bring value to their company. During 2011, they saved $2.7 million through the alliance programs and projects with almost one million of that from the sharing of tools, equipment and personnel. They attained another $2.8 million in savings through the use of the Alliance group-purchasing contracts, including over $400K savings in valve services and nearly $1.7 million in freight management. All USA programs, projects & contracts are available to the entire member utility (fossil, T&D and so forth), not just the nuclear stations. Since WCNOC is a stand-alone nuclear operating company, its owner utilities also received savings through use of the USA agreements that contributed to Wolf Creek’s overall total.

The runner-up for 2011 was AEP’s DC Cook station, with a total savings of $3,477,068. Energy Northwest’s Columbia station came in third, with a savings of $3,344,393. All told for 2011 the nine USA full members realized $26,698,350 in savings and avoided costs through their collective participation in the Alliance agreements and projects, with an average ROI of 19.90:1.

Wolf Creek employees Rich Clemens- Vice President-Projects, Chip Calia, Management Council Rep, and Vic Canalas, Manager Supply Chain, pose with the award.