Oregon ranks 3rd in the US in hydroelectric power development, and hydropower supplies nearly half of the state's energy needs. Multipurpose federal projects, including four dams on the Columbia River and eight in the Willamette Basin, and projects owned by private or public utilities give Oregon a hydroelectric capacity of over 8,100,000 kW. In recent decades, low-cost power from dams has proved inadequate to meet the state's energy needs, and nuclear and coal-fired steam plants have been built to supply additional electric power. As of 2001, however, there were no nuclear power plants in operation.
Hydropower provided 82% of electricity in 1999; coal and gas-fired thermal plants produced nearly 16%. Oregon's total electric power production (utility and nonutility) in 1999 was 56.7 billion kWh; total installed capacity was 11.2 million kW. The Bonneville Power Administration, the federal power-marketing agency, operates a power distribution grid interconnecting Oregon, Washington, and parts of Idaho and Montana.
Energy consumption per capita was 316 million Btu (79.6 million kcal) in 2000 (35th in the US).