About Western

Western's mission is to market and deliver reliable, renewable, cost-based hydroelectric power and related services within a 15-state region of the central and western U.S. We're one of four power marketing administrations within the U.S. Department of Energy whose role is to market and transmit electricity from multi-use water projects. Our transmission system carries electricity from 56 power plants operated by the Bureau of Reclamation, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and the International Boundary and Water Commission, and one coal-fied plant. Together, these plants have an installed capacity of 10,505 megawatts.

Western and its energy-producing partners are separately managed and financed. In addition, each water project maintains a separate financial system and records.

Western's administrator and staff focus on sound business practices and cost containment.

Western’s role in the electric utility industry
Western is a wholesale power provider. We sell and transmit power through 17,000 miles of lines and 296 substations. This power is generated at 56 Federal dams plus the coal-fired Navajo Generating Station to Federal and state agencies, cities and towns, rural electric cooperatives, public utility districts, irrigation districts and Native American tribes. They, in turn, provide retail electric service to millions of consumers in the West.

Western’s Strategic Plan and Targets
The Strategic Plan is our roadmap to ensure we can continue to achieve our core mission of delivering cost-based, renewable, non-carbon-emitting Federal hydropower to our firm electric service customers while addressing the challenges before us and getting maximum benefit from our resources.

Recently, Western’s senior management team updated Western’s strategic plan. Our core mission remains the same. We are working to remain nimble to keep pace with industry trends and issues that continue to confront us and our customers at a faster and faster pace—be they regulatory, budgetary, legislative, environmental or other initiatives not yet imag­ined.

As part of the continual process of making the long-term business commitments described in our Strategic Plan a reality, you can read our Fiscal Year 2013 Strategic Targets and Acting Administrator Anita Decker's memo to the Energy Deputy Secretary regarding the how Western supports DOE's Strategic Plan. 

Also available is our Fiscal Year 2012 Strategic Targets Performance Summary and memo to Energy Deputy Secretary regarding Western's performance. 

More information about Western's operations can be found in our annual report (pdf) and strategic plan. Also, visit our Newsroom for fact sheets and publications on Western's activities.