WAPA selects Mike McElhany as Rocky Mountain regional manager
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: August 11, 2017
CONTACT: Teresa Plant, 303.328.8225, mediarelations@wapa.gov
LAKEWOOD, Colorado – Western Area Power Administration named Mike McElhany the new manager of the Rocky Mountain region. He has been acting in this position since May 30.
"McElhany has worked at WAPA for more than 30 years, across all of our regions and the Washington Liaison Office," said WAPA Administrator and CEO Mark A. Gabriel. "His breadth of organizational knowledge and political savvy make him an excellent leader and ally poised to support our relationship-driven work in Rocky Mountain."
The RM region sells power in Colorado, Wyoming, Nebraska and Kansas to wholesale customers such as towns, rural electric cooperatives, public utility districts, irrigation districts, Native American tribes, U.S. Bureau of Reclamation customers and federal, state and military agencies. The RM region markets power from the Loveland Area Projects, including the Fryingpan-Arkansas Project and the Pick-Sloan Missouri Basin Program—Western Division.
"I look forward to working closely with the employees, customers and stakeholders of the Rocky Mountain region," said McElhany. "With teamwork and powerful partnerships, I know we can be proud of collaboratively powering the energy frontier."
As regional manager, McElhany will lead around 350 employees in marketing and delivering reliable, cost-based federal hydropower. The RM regional staff also operates and maintains a network of more than 3,400 miles of high-voltage transmission lines.
McElhany holds a B.S. in electrical and electronics engineering from North Dakota State University. He has more than 30 years of experience with the organization and most recently served as liaison for the Department of Energy on all issues involving WAPA. He played a critical role in formulating and integrating internal and external program policy by providing information to congress, federal agencies, industry associations and customers.
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About WAPA: Western Area Power Administration annually markets and transmits more than 25,000 gigawatt hours of clean, renewable power from 57 federal hydroelectric powerplants owned and operated by the Bureau of Reclamation, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and International Boundary and Water Commission in 15 western and central states. It is part of the Department of Energy. Follow us on Twitter @WesternAreaPowr or visit the website at www.wapa.gov.
