Energy Northwest

Also known as Washington Public Power Supply System, WPPSS

Energy Northwest is a joint operating agency of public utilities in Washington state, created by state law in 1957 as the Washington Public Power Supply System (WPPSS) and renamed in 1998. It is headquartered in Richland. In the 1970s it began building five large nuclear plants at once, and the resulting collapse led to the second-largest municipal bond default in US history. Its current nuclear plant, Columbia Generating Station, entered commercial operation in December 1984, and it also runs hydro, wind, solar and storage projects.