This week is Public Power Week, a national celebration of the benefits of public power. The week provides the opportunity for locally-owned, not-for-profit public power utilities like Hillsboro to highlight the benefits and values of public power and hopefully foster a deeper understanding among customers and stakeholders about their local utilities.
“It’s a time for communities like ours to recognize the importance of owning and managing our own utilities. It’s a way to connect with the community and share the value of having local control over our energy resources,” said Hillsboro Mayor Lou Thurston. “It’s an opportunity to showcase the work our local utility staff does every day to serve Hillsboro. It also strengthens trust between our local government and residents, helping people understand how public power makes Hillsboro a better place to live and do business.”
The week consists of friendly competition where cities can earn points for various activities. The points are then tallied up and the winner gets the traveling trophy. Hillsboro won the competition last year and is going all out to try to win again this year with various activities planned throughout the week such as a cereal food drive, an electric car show, Public Appreciation Wednesday at city hall and more.
About KPP
One of Hillsboro’s goals for the week, is to help the community learn more about the Kansas Power Pool (KPP). KPP, one of two municipal energy agencies in Kansas, is the not-for-profit municipal joint action agency that provides all the electricity used in Hillsboro and 23 other Kansas communities.
“Our mission at KPP is to provide affordable and reliable electric service to our members. By working together through KPP, our 24 Kansas cities can be more efficient and cost-effective and succeed in what has become a very complex electric industry,” said CEO and General Manager of KPP Energy Colin Hansen who has worked in the utilities field for over 22 years.
“What makes KPP especially important is that it allows smaller cities like Hillsboro to have a say in how power is generated, purchased and managed,” said Thurston who serves on the KPP Board of Directors. “Unlike privately-owned utilities, KPP is owned by the member cities it serves. That means decisions are made with the community’s best interests in mind, not for the benefit of shareholders. It also fosters collaboration between member cities, sharing best practices and resources. Public power keeps our focus where it should be—on reliability, affordability and community well-being.”
Hillsboro became a member of KPP in November 2005 in the same year that the company formed.
“Being part of KPP has brought many advantages to Hillsboro. First and foremost, it has allowed us to secure stable energy prices, which means our residents and businesses don’t face wild fluctuations in their utility bills. It has also given us access to technical expertise and resources for maintaining and improving our local grid. Winter Storm Uri showed us that during extreme weather events, KPP’s pooled resources ensure we can manage energy demands more effectively than if we were on our own,” said Thurston.
Hansen said there there are many benefits to being a member, but the most important one is affordable and reliable electric supply.
“KPP electric rates are at the second lowest level that they have been since 2014. It would be significantly more costly for Hillsboro to secure power supply on its own outside of KPP,” said Hansen.
Solar Project
KPP is currently working on a project for a one-megawatt solar array that would span seven acres in Hillsboro. The project site will be out near the wastewater lagoons and will inject power into the Hillsboro distribution system.
According to KPP Director of Engineering Services James Ging, KPP is installing 18 megawatts total throughout the entire membership in addition to the one megawatt in Hillsboro. The other communities included in the project are Clay Center, Ellinwood, Greensburg, Marion, Wellington and Winfield. The entire project aims to generate sufficient electricity to meet the needs of approximately 4,000 homes and businesses.
Ging said the support of USDA PACE (Powering Affordable Clean Energy) loan financing, as well as some investment tax credit, has made the $49 million project economical for KPP members to install.
“KPP and Hillsboro are the only PACE awardee in Kansas so far and one of very few public power systems in the U.S. to be selected. It’s exciting to be able to bring low-cost renewable energy to our members through this USDA Rural Utilities Service program. The solar array will be a great addition to our existing portfolio of electric generating sources and serve Hillsboro well,” said Hansen.
“This project is about bringing more renewable energy into the mix, which is something we’ve been
working toward for years. By participating in this initiative, Hillsboro is demonstrating its commitment to both environmental stewardship and long-term energy security. It helps keep costs stable and reduces our carbon footprint. This means we are acting now to ensure a more sustainable future,” said Thurston. “I’m proud that we are a part of this project, and I believe it aligns us perfectly with our vision of respecting our past while building strength for the future.”
KPP is still waiting for the terms and conditions on the USDA loan to get to them so the board can approve them.
“Once that happens, then we can start procuring equipment and picking our contractors to do the work. We’re expecting it to take about a year to get all 18 megawatts done,” said Ging. “I think it’s gonna be great to have those those solar arrays in communities. We’re used to seeing wind windmills everywhere, but not so much solar. I think it’d be kinda cool to have that in your backyard where you can see it. Then we’ll also be able to educate the community with that—to do school tours and and do educational events with the schools.”
For more information on Public Power Week activities, check out the City of Hillsboro Facebook page or call the city office at 620-947-3162.