Great River Energy reached an agreement to sell the Coal Creek Station power plant to Rainbow Energy Center, LLC. The sale of Coal Creek Station will avert the plant’s closure, which was scheduled for the second half of 2022. Rainbow Energy Center will purchase and operate the 1,151-megawatt (MW) power plant using current plant employees […]
There are a lot of differing views when it comes to discussing the future of electricity production. One promising technology, however, has gained support from the business community, environmental advocates, the White House and elected officials on both sides of the aisle: carbon capture, utilization and storage (CCUS). By removing the greenhouse gas emissions from […]
After 40 years serving Minnesota cooperative members, North Dakota’s largest and most efficient power plant will continue operations under local ownership. Rainbow Energy Center, LLC (Rainbow Energy Center) has reached an agreement to purchase Coal Creek Station from Great River Energy and operate the 1,151-megawatt (MW) power plant using current plant employees they hire. Nexus […]
Great River Energy’s system performed well in early June despite the stretch of temperatures repeatedly reaching above 90 degrees Fahrenheit. “We did not experience any overloading on the transmission system, and we did not need to make any special operational changes except for some equipment maintenance work schedule changes,” said Great River Energy Operations and […]
Minnesotans experience weather in extremes oftentimes on a recurring cycle — from deep freezes to big melts to heat waves — which means electric cooperatives must be prepared year-round to keep electricity flowing to homes, farms and businesses no matter what Mother Nature brings. When temperatures drop as low as they did during the polar […]
Part of Great River Energy’s commitment to providing reliable, affordable electricity to its member-owner cooperatives is an ongoing responsibility to minimize the environmental impact of its operations. The co-op demonstrates its dedication to environmental stewardship by the inclusion of sustainability in its mission statement, a commitment to incorporating renewable energy into its power supply portfolio […]
Great River Energy recently filed an interim integrated resource plan (IRP) update with the Minnesota Public Utilities Commission (PUC) outlining the cooperative’s future power supply portfolio changes. Generally submitted every two years, an IRP is a forward-looking document that requires utilities to give advance notice of how they plan to generate electricity for the next […]
The CapX2020 partners announced March 9 they are evolving, moving into the future under a new name: Grid North Partners. Great River Energy was a co-founder of the transmission partnership CapX2020, a group of 10 utilities formed in 2004 to upgrade and expand the transmission system in the Upper Midwest. The CapX2020 partners successfully built […]
As parts of the United States struggled to maintain electric service during a historic cold snap, Minnesota’s cooperatives went to great lengths to ensure their members had the energy they needed. Electricity is responsible for a long list of conveniences of modern life: a charged phone, hot coffee, air conditioning, television. But, when the temperature drops below zero, dependable energy is also a matter of safety. Historic cold weather across the country in mid-February drove […]
As Minnesota relies more on renewable forms of energy such as wind and solar, some members are wondering: Will my power stay reliable? Electric cooperatives depend on electricity around the clock which is why Great River Energy always requires access to diverse power sources. In addition to a portfolio that includes 10 power plants and […]