ACEP Summer Internship Program 2026

Beneficial Electrification Analysis for an Alaska Utility

Beneficial electrification, including switching from combustion to heat pumps for building heat and trading gas for electric cars, promises potential benefits to wallets, the climate, and cost-effective electric grid operation. However, there are unknowns in their performance and potential in Alaska. Heat pumps, which use a refrigerant cycle to transfer heat from cold air to warm the indoors, can be an efficient and healthy way to heat homes, even in cold climates. Maine, Sweden, southeast Alaska, and the Northwest Arctic Borough of Alaska are all leading the way in heat pump deployment. However, the Anchorage area has few heat pumps deployed despite a relatively mild winter climate and large population. Progress towards widespread heat pump adoption has been hindered by looming questions around installation cost, operating cost compared to natural gas heating, conservation of regional natural gas reserves, and the community benefits to electricity ratepayers as a whole. Electric vehicles are being adopted more quickly since they are cheaper to operate than gas vehicles in Anchorage. Questions about beneficial electrification can be investigated with electric consumption data available for heat pumps and electric vehicles.

Project Description: The intern will assist with beneficial electrification data collection and analysis in the Anchorage area, helping to decide appropriate instrumentation and techniques. The intern will use this analysis to answer key questions from stakeholders about the potential benefits and challenges to beneficial electrification in the Anchorage area, as well as policies, incentives, and other possible ways to effectively address barriers.

Electric Vehicles in the Arctic - EV Data Analysis

People have concerns about the performance of EVs in the harsh winter conditions of Alaska, and how they might integrate in rural Alaska. We also do not want to leave people behind in an energy transition. It may save customers money and reduce emissions if most people are able to switch to EVs and use renewable energy, but if some people are left behind in this transition, and their needs unmet, this is unfair. We need more information to make sure that this engineering solution benefits all members of society.

Project Description: We are crowdsourcing data from EVs on the road in Alaska and deploying an ‘intercept’ survey to collect information from users of EV chargers in the state. The intern will be responsible for collecting additional survey deployment as well as analysis of data from both sources. This analysis will allow us to help individuals and communities make informed decisions on where EVs might bring benefits to Alaskans. Previous work by interns in 2024 and 2025 have helped develop the survey instrument and begin the analysis of early EV data. This project will use and expand on literature research skills, data analysis/visualization and python coding skills, as well as writing/storytelling skills. It will also develop an intern’s skills in ethical research with human subjects and working with community partners and community members to gather further survey information. 

Low Temperature Geothermal Opportunities in Alaska

Alaska has the largest geothermal potential, yet the potential has not been utilized on a utility scale. Alaska's geothermal potential comes from the subduction zone along the edges of the Pacific tectonic plate. A particularly active area in Alaska is the Aleutian Arc, which stretches from Anchorage out towards Russia, covering over 2,500 km. However, there is a significant mismatch between the geothermal high-temperature areas and the demand. Well temperature data from oil drilling have shown some low-temperature geothermal fields in proximity to Anchorage. Such energy sources could be of interest for space heating and industrial processes.

Project Description: This project aims to create an overview of the current data on the low-temperature geothermal resource in the Railbelt area. Based on this information, the research aims to determine which sectors, such as residential and industrial consumers, can utilize geothermal low-temperature resources, evaluating their willingness to pay for the energy resource and comparing it against cost estimations of different technologies to determine if it is a viable energy option. The study should determine the next steps and follow-up research projects.

Low Temperature Geothermal Opportunities in Alaska

Alaska has the largest geothermal potential, yet the potential has not been utilized on a utility scale. Alaska's geothermal potential comes from the subduction zone along the edges of the Pacific tectonic plate. A particularly active area in Alaska is the Aleutian Arc, which stretches from Anchorage out towards Russia, covering over 2,500 km. However, there is a significant mismatch between the geothermal high-temperature areas and the demand. Well temperature data from oil drilling have shown some low-temperature geothermal fields in proximity to Anchorage. Such energy sources could be of interest for space heating and industrial processes.

Project Description: This project aims to create an overview of the current data on the low-temperature geothermal resource in the Railbelt area. Based on this information, the research aims to determine which sectors, such as residential and industrial consumers, can utilize geothermal low-temperature resources, evaluating their willingness to pay for the energy resource and comparing it against cost estimations of different technologies to determine if it is a viable energy option. The study should determine the next steps and follow-up research projects.

Blackstart options for the UAF campus grid and Fairbanks Northstar Borough Region

University of Alaska Fairbanks (UAF) is an islandable mini-grid within the Fairbanks electrical grid, and Fairbanks is part of the Railbelt grid (see Railbelt storymap by ACEP intern Kemi Adediran). Although Fairbanks purchases power from Anchorage via the Intertie, if the Intertie trips or goes offline, Fairbanks has sufficient generation capacity to power itself and maintain a decent degree of frequency stability including Aurora Power, Zehnder Power Plant, North Pole Diesel, and the BESS. It does not, however, have black start capability. UAF campus can also power itself through its own coal-fired combined heat and power plant. This power plant is connected to the Fairbanks (and thus the Railbelt Grid). It, too, does not have black start capability.

Project Description: We would like to investigate the options for UAF and for Fairbanks North Star Borough to have black start capability if we have a total outage and are not connected to the Intertie. For UAF, that almost certainly means a diesel or natural gas-fired generator at the UAF power plant. For Fairbanks, there are more options, and can happen at Zehnder, Aurora, North Pole, or another site. They can involve purchasing new generation assets or beefing up the power electronics on existing assets. In this project, the intern will conduct interviews, assessments, and build up their technical competence to evaluate what it would take to bring black start capabilities to the UAF power plant.

Advanced Hydrokinetic Field Work

The Pacific Marine Energy Center at the University of Alaska Fairbanks (PMEC-UAF) provides practical and innovative solutions for hydrokinetic power generation to help meet Alaska's energy challenges. Our research informs communities, industry, regulators and other stakeholders on the economic and environmental sustainability of emerging hydrokinetic technologies.

Project Description: This internship gives a student the opportunity to work at an active hydrokinetic test site, in the PMEC shop, and on other oceanographic or inter-rivine projects doing field work, data collection, problem solving, and other tasks that a student would often learn when they enter the workforce in a related field. This internship includes a lot of hands-on work with tools, different materials, and a wide range of instruments used in hydrological data collection. Students will spend several days job shadowing a PMEC engineer and a PMEC project manager to see how projects work from start t o finish. The intern will work with their mentors to develop a project that reflects their interests. 

OT Cybersecurity Training Module Development

Alaska's energy landscape presents a unique security challenge: while utilities on the central Railbelt grid will soon have a regulatory framework to address cyber-risk, the majority of the state's islanded microgrid utilities operate without comparable guidance. These microgrids are essential lifelines for hundreds of remote communities but face limited financial and human resources, making it difficult to maturely address growing cyber-risk. This internship directly supports the Alaska Center for Energy and Power (ACEP) initiative to address this gap by enhancing the existing CAMIO Cyber-physical Lab into a comprehensive Cyber Range by developing cybersecurity training modules for hands-on workshop events to be hosted by ACEP.

Project Description: This internship will transform core security principles into highly practical, engaging training modules for the deployable Portable Training Ground Resource. The intern will use the existing CAMIO Lab's virtualization platform to design, build, and validate the training content. The intern will begin with intensive training on foundational concepts: IPv4 networking, Gateways, DHCP, NTP, and basic firewall configuration in order to complete the internship’s primary task: developing two complete training modules as sets of CTFd (Capture The Flag) challenges targeted for a 2026 Rural Energy Conference workshop in Fairbanks:

• Module 1:Networking Basics:Develop challenges that teach participants how to correctly implement network segmentation, configure essential services like DHCP, DNS and NTP the core services of any Local Area Network (LAN)
• Module 2: Firewall Basis: Develop challenges that teach participants how to set up and configure basic firewall routers and mult-lan segmented networks.

Microgrid Lessons Learned: From Alaska to the World

Alaska has extensive and globally significant experience in the field of microgrids, driven by its unique geographic, climatic, and economic conditions. Over 200 remote communities are operating islanded microgrids. Due to challenging logistics and increasing fuel costs, communities have sought more affordable ways to generate electricity over the past few decades than diesel-based systems. The innovative approach of the communities has led to a wide range of hybrid renewable systems, including wind, solar, hydro, battery, and flywheel. Kodiak Island is a leader in terms of integrating renewables; its hydro-wind system provides 99% of the electricity. 

Project Description: This project looks into transferring microgrid knowledge from Alaska to temperate areas (the lower 48 th & Europe), offering valuable lessons in resilience, remote energy management, and renewable integration. Energy security is a growing concern; continental grids have experienced blackouts related to the volatility of energy generation. For example, a large blackout occurred in Spain in the spring of 2025. Alaska's expertise in microgrids can help build small-scale, grid-connected microgrids for building blocks. The grid-connected microgrid would provide the building with added energy security, as it can operate off-grid during a blackout event. 

Blackstart options for the UAF campus grid and Fairbanks Northstar Borough Region

University of Alaska Fairbanks (UAF) is an islandable mini-grid within the Fairbanks electrical grid, and Fairbanks is part of the Railbelt grid (see Railbelt storymap by ACEP intern Kemi Adediran). Although Fairbanks purchases power from Anchorage via the Intertie, if the Intertie trips or goes offline, Fairbanks has sufficient generation capacity to power itself and maintain a decent degree of frequency stability including Aurora Power, Zehnder Power Plant, North Pole Diesel, and the BESS. It does not, however, have black start capability. UAF campus can also power itself through its own coal-fired combined heat and power plant. This power plant is connected to the Fairbanks (and thus the Railbelt Grid). It, too, does not have black start capability.

Project Description: We would like to investigate the options for UAF and for Fairbanks North Star Borough to have black start capability if we have a total outage and are not connected to the Intertie. For UAF, that almost certainly means a diesel or natural gas-fired generator at the UAF power plant. For Fairbanks, there are more options, and can happen at Zehnder, Aurora, North Pole, or another site. They can involve purchasing new generation assets or beefing up the power electronics on existing assets. In this project, the intern will conduct interviews, assessments, and build up their technical competence to evaluate what it would take to bring black start capabilities to the UAF power plant.

Introduction to Hydrokinetic Field Work

The Pacific Marine Energy Center at the University of Alaska Fairbanks (PMEC-UAF) provides practical and innovative solutions for hydrokinetic power generation to help meet Alaska's energy challenges. Our research informs communities, industry, regulators and other stakeholders on the economic and environmental sustainability of emerging hydrokinetic technologies.

Project Description: This internship gives a student the opportunity to work at an active hydrokinetic test site, in the PMEC shop, and on other oceanographic or inter-rivine projects doing field work, data collection, problem solving, and other tasks that a student would often learn when they enter the workforce in a related field. This internship includes a lot of hands-on work with tools, different materials, and a wide range of instruments used in hydrological data collection. Students will spend several days job shadowing a PMEC engineer and a PMEC project manager to see how projects work from start t o finish. The intern will work with their mentors to develop a project that reflects their interests. 

Energy Security in Alaska and Guam

This internship will produce a short comparison of energy systems in Alaska and Guam, two regions operating under remote, infrastructure-constrained conditions. The project will examine how energy in each region is structured, where vulnerabilities exist, and how energy priorities are shaped by local community needs and future development goals.

Purpose and Significance: Alaska and Guam face similar energy challenges: isolated grids, complex fuel logistics, high costs, and exposure to environmental and geopolitical disruption. However, there is limited structured comparison between these systems, particularly in how community priorities shape system design and decision-making. This project will create a simple, usable comparison that makes these systems easy to understand and compare and grounded in community context.

This comparison also considers how decision-making, risk, and benefits are distributed across each system, and how these dynamics shape energy priorities at the community level. The work supports early relationship-building with Guam-based energy stakeholders and contributes to longer-term Alaska–Pacific knowledge exchange.

Community-Driven River Energy in McGrath: From resource assessment to demonstration project implementation

The Pacific Marine Energy Center at the University of Alaska Fairbanks (PMEC-UAF) provides practical and innovative solutions for hydrokinetic power generation to help meet Alaska's energy challenges. PMEC research informs communities, industry, regulators and other stakeholders on the economic and environmental sustainability of emerging hydrokinetic technologies. The Tanana River Hydrokinetic Test Site (TRTS) is used to test hydrokinetic power generating devices, related technologies, and to characterize the river environment under realistic Alaska river conditions. Researchers and industrial clients can use the test site to assess interaction between hydrokinetic devices and the environment, including fish interactions, debris management, turbine placement, hydrodynamic analysis, sediment transport and icing. PMEC and ACEP at UAF aim to support communities in finding practical, cost-effective energy solutions, and to accelerate the responsible development of wave, tidal and in-river energy technologies, which are collectively referred to as marine hydrokinetic (MHK) energy.

Project description: This internship will participate in a community assistance project evaluating river hydrokinetic energy (RHK) on the Kuskokwim River in McGrath, Alaska. The intern will learn data analysis techniques for velocity and bathymetric data measured by acoustic Doppler current profilers (ADCP) and a multibeam echosounder (MBES), and become familiarized with the basics of Delft3D flow modeling and energy balance modeling software such as HOMER or MiGrids Lite. The student will have an opportunity to interact with local stakeholders and subsistence river users. This internship includes remote travel to McGrath for fieldwork and community meetings. The aim of this project is to support the community taking steps toward implementation of a RHK. demonstration project. Depending on the interests of the student, the work could be more technical around the river resource and modeling the microgrid, or could involve more community interviews and require some training in human subjects research and respectful engagement. Tasks will also include planning, prepping, and executing remote fieldwork, learning how to program and deploy numerous oceanographic and river instruments (ADCPs and sonars), boat driving, basic mechanical applications and development of community outreach materials. The intern will work out of the UAA campus, with optional travel to the PMEC lab on UAF campus.

This work will continue research from previous MS student research by Lydia Andriesson (Summer research presentation, Energy in the North radio episode)