Upper North Fork Feather River Project
The Upper North Fork Feather River Project is a hydroelectric scheme in the Sierra Nevada of California, within Lassen and Plumas Counties. The project consists of three dams, five power plants, and multiple conduits and tunnels in the headwaters of the North Fork Feather River, a major tributary of the Feather—Sacramento River systems. The total installed capacity is 362.3 megawatts (MW), producing an annual average of 1,171.9 gigawatt hours (GWh). The project is also contracted for the delivery of irrigation water between March 31 and October 31 of each year. The project is owned and operated by Pacific Gas and Electric Company.
Satellite view of Lake Almanor (center left); Butt Valley Reservoir is partly visible at bottom left. The large body of water at right is Mountain Meadows Reservoir, part of PG&E's separate Hamilton Branch Project.
The North Fork Feather River is a watercourse of the northern Sierra Nevada and southern Cascades in the U.S. state of California. It flows generally southwards from its headwaters near Lassen Peak to Lake Oroville, a reservoir formed by Oroville Dam in the foothills of the Sierra, where it runs into the Feather River. The river drains about 2,100 square miles (5,400Â km2) of the western slope of the Sierras. By discharge, it is the largest tributary of the Feather.
Freight train crossing the North Fork, 2017
Kings Creek (foreground) headwaters flow >11 mi (18 km) from the SE slope of Lassen Peak (background), >7 mi (11 km) in Warner Creek, and >63 mi (101 km) in the North Fork to Lake Oroville's northern arm.