The Board approved a new communication system for OPALCO using fiber optics. BPA laid a new cable between Anacortes and Lopez Island and signed a 30-year agreement with OPALCO to lease 12 fibers to the Co-op for a one-time fee equal to the cost of manufacturing those fibers. By the end of the year, aerial fiber was installed on Lopez and San Juan Islands in Phase I of the project. Phase II construction began in July 2002 with aerial fiber installed on Shaw, Orcas, and more of Lopez.