Target 7.2: Increase substantially the share of renewable energy in the global energy mix.
The Problem Galena, a village on the Yukon River, depended on diesel brought in by air or river barge for its power.
The Move They Made In 2014 the City of Galena, the Galena City School District and the Louden Tribal Council formed Sustainable Energy for Galena Alaska (SEGA). Its first project was a biomass boiler, burning locally harvested wood, to heat the Galena Interior Learning Academy campus. In 2023 a 50-kilowatt solar pilot was installed for the Louden Tribe. That led to a 1.5-megawatt community solar array with battery storage, backed by federal funding. Aaren Sommer, a graduate of the academy, helped install it.
The Proof In mid-2025 the array was nearly complete. It was expected to run the community on renewable power on sunny summer days and to save around 100,000 gallons of diesel a year. [Check the current status and add the actual results.]
Your Move A 50kW pilot came before the 1.5MW array. Run the pilot, prove it, then scale it with the people who will maintain it.
Sources
US Department Of Energy, What Energizing Rural Communities Means For Galena, Alaska
US Department Of Energy, Community-Scale Solar PV And Battery Project, Galena
The Business Download, Remote Alaskan Community Invests In Clean Energy (2025)
KUAC, Galena Hopes Solar Energy Will Reduce Cost Of Generating Power (2023)
