Originally designed to solely produce electricity, Coal Creek Station is now integral to the production of several products as the center of an energy park. Together with Boral Resources, Coal Creek Station is now processing Micron3, an ultrafine ash separated from the plant’s fly ash. An employee of Boral Resources fills 25-pound sample bags of …
As alcohol and drug addiction has risen – doubling in the past five years – so has the need for additional treatment services and space at the Heartview Foundation in North Dakota. To help meet the growing demand for treatment facilities, Great River Energy donated $50,000 to the Heartview Foundation’s capital campaign. The donated funds …
Great River Energy aids in Heartview’s recovery expansion Read More »
As a cooperative, Great River Energy is deeply committed to sustainability through solid environmental policies and practices and helping to build strong communities. Sustainability has been at the heart of the organization since it was formed in 1999. Great River Energy strives to provide its member-owner cooperatives with affordable, reliable energy in harmony with a …
A partner that cares: Sustainability at Great River Energy Read More »
Great River Energy and the nine other utilities that make up the CapX2020 organization convened last August to discuss a study that would examine how the changing generation resource mix will impact transmission system operations and reliability. After months of collaboration and analysis, they recently issued the CapX2050 Transmission Vision Report. The report identifies the …
CapX2020 report outlines transmission grid challenges Read More »
Dakota Electric Association members are receiving more electricity from the sun through a new 3-megawatt solar facility built specifically for the cooperative’s members. The 15-acre solar site, south of Farmington, Minnesota, is expected to have a 25-year life and will produce enough electricity to power about 600 average homes. The 10,368 panels will produce more …
Fourth solar project producing power for Dakota Electric members Read More »
When black smoke settled over the Northern Metals facility in Becker, Minnesota, the smog hovered for almost a week. Nearby, Great River Energy’s Liberty Substation was so covered in smog that employees couldn’t perform a visual inspection of the substation equipment due to health concerns. Most of the substation had to be de-energized as a …
Substation cleaned of ashes, soot following Northern Metals fire Read More »
As the coronavirus (COVID-19) continues to spread, Great River Energy is taking precautions to protect the health and well-being of its employees to ensure the co-op is prepared to keep the lights on for 1.7 million Minnesotans. Great River Energy has implemented its response plan, which includes enacting social distancing practices. Employees who can work …
Eighty acres of Great River Energy-owned property was recently placed in a conservation easement with the help of the Minnesota Land Trust. The area—adjacent to Carlos Avery Wildlife Management Area (WMA)—creates a natural, continuous habitat for numerous bird species, including red-shouldered hawks, sandhill cranes and red-headed woodpeckers. “The importance of this property cannot be understated,” …
Those are the attributes Minnesota cooperative members value most about the electricity that serves their homes, schools and businesses. That is just one of the discoveries from a recent survey of 800 member-consumers who receive electricity from Great River Energy’s 28 member-owner cooperatives. Great River Energy has conducted this biennial survey since 2008. “This type …
Work to provide a new home to the peregrine falcons who usually nest at Elk River Energy Recovery Station has begun. With decommissioning of the Elk River power plant underway, employees chose a new site for the falcons to return to for their typical nesting period from mid-February through March, depending on weather patterns. Line …