Keowee P-2503

Duke Energy Carolinas, LLC (Duke Energy) owns and operates the Keowee-Toxaway Hydroelectric Project (Project), located on the Keowee and Little Rivers in the Savannah River Basin. The Project consists of two hydroelectric developments: Keowee Hydro Facility with Lake Keowee and Jocassee Pumped Storage Facility with Lake Jocassee.

The Project is located in the region commonly referred to as the Piedmont Foothills. Water released from the Project at Keowee Hydro flows into Lake Hartwell, a hydroelectric reservoir operated by the US Army Corps of Engineers and ultimately into the Atlantic Ocean at Savannah Harbor.

The 2-unit Keowee Hydro is a 157.5 MW conventional hydro generating plant located in Pickens County, South Carolina. Keowee Hydro began operating in 1971. The average annual generation from the Keowee Hydro is approximately 70,000 megawatt hours. Lake Keowee’s full pond elevation is 800 feet above msl. At full pond, the surface area of Lake Keowee is approximately 17,700 acres with approximately 388 miles of shoreline.Lake Keowee was formed by constructing dams across the Keowee River and the Little River, creating a reservoir with two distinct halves. The Keowee Dam is a homogenous earthfill structure 170 feet high and 3,500 feet in length. The Little River Dam is a homogenous earthfill structure 150 feet high and 1,800 feet in length. The four saddle dikes (designated as A, B, C, and D) range in height from 4 to 100 feet and are located on the Little River segment of the reservoir. The Little River portion of Lake Keowee is connected to the Keowee River side of Lake Keowee by an excavated canal.

(Source: Duke Energy)