The Power Branch, Water Management Division, is the main functional element dealing with hydropower operational planning for Corps reservoirs in the North Pacific Region. Power Branch primarily performs the following tasks:
- Develop hydro operating plans for Corps and Treaty reservoirs in the Columbia River Basin,
- Coordinate regional power planning studies,
- Support the activities of the Corps-BPA Joint Operating Committee,
- Conduct hydropower rehabilitation studies, regionally and nationally, and
- Coordinate Corps comments on FERC license applications. Many of these activities are conducted to support the Corps' multi-purpose mission, in parallel with other power studies done by agencies and utilities whose sole purpose is power production.
The Power Branch consists of two complementary groups: the Hydropower Analysis Center of Expertise, which provides services to Corps offices in this and other regions of the country, and the Operational Planning Unit, which exclusively supports the Corps' water management functions in the Pacific Northwest.