Also known as Lock 17, the dam straddles the Warrior
River between Birmingham and Tuscaloosa and was built
by the Army Corps of Engineers in 1915.
While Alabama Power owns and operates the
hydroelectric generating unit, the Corps still owns the
reservoir and operates the dam's spill gates.
e unit should be back on line in December and
generating electricity, about 53 ½ megawatts capacity.
"We generate roughly enough power to provide for the
city of Tuscaloosa," Kirkland said. "We are looking forward
to getting it back online by the latter half of this year."
"is project modernizes Bankhead and will allow
it to generate clean, renewable, reliable and affordable
electricity for another 40 to 50 years and beyond," said
Herbie Johnson, Alabama Power's Hydro general manager.
Bankhead is named aer John Hollis Bankhead, a
U.S. senator from Jasper who was a strong advocate for
developing navigable waterways.
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