General

Our mission is to provide you with the lowest-cost power possible, but we also offer tools to help you better manage your service. By understanding how your electricity usage impacts your bill, you may find ways to lower your power costs.

One of these helpful tools is SmartHub, a customer-friendly app that tracks your meter usage. The first image below shows my household’s annual monthly usage (green bars) alongside the average temperature (black line). As you can see, during the cooler months, my usage increases because of electric heating. The second snapshot illustrates February’s usage spike, which occurred when temperatures dropped below zero for several days. The final snapshot displays a single day’s hourly usage, showing how usage decreases when our programmable thermostat manages our HVAC system and rises when we return home and start using appliances. SmartHub logs usage in 15-minute intervals, allowing for a detailed analysis of your electricity consumption.

In addition to usage tracking, SmartHub offers a range of features for managing your account. You can sign up for paperless billing, set up autopay with your checking account or credit card, and view billing and payment history. The app also allows you to set up notifications for high-usage alerts, power outages, and restorations. You can even report outages and submit service requests directly through the app.

Sign up for SmartHub today! We’re currently entering all customers who enroll in SmartHub paperless billing into a drawing to win a $50 Visa gift card.

Recently, the Nebraska Chamber Foundation commissioned a study on the current state of Nebraska’s electric sector as the entire US electric industry faces significant load growth not seen since the 1970s. Why is the Chamber interested? Because the availability of affordable, reliable electricity is critical to economic development.  Economic development is critical to ensuring all of our Nebraska communities remain alive, thriving, and relevant. 

However, the focus on available energy has increased in recent years, as have the load growth factors. Large loads are appearing across the entire US footprint as artificial intelligence (AI), online commerce, and other online applications require 24/7 power for data centers. Federal policy and incentives are driving more US manufacturing, which will enable the US to rely less on foreign imports. Even the ag industry is experiencing significant biotechnology, hydrogen, and sustainable fuel production growth. 

Securing adequately diversified power supply resources and upgrading aging infrastructure to meet this demand is the challenge our electric industry faces today, especially as the grid shifts from baseload fossil-fuel sources to variable, weather-dependent sources. This shift does not necessarily come from the grid operators but from the federal policy, incentives, and customer demands for “clean” energy. 

Public Power in Nebraska has built a strong foundation with some of the US’s lowest electric costs and highest reliability statistics, ranking in the top five. Public Power also has a strong history of meeting the needs and goals of its communities, so this challenge is nothing new. 

I would encourage you to take the time to review this study to better understand the need for improving our grid infrastructure, the benefits and trade-offs of different types of energy resources, the impact of energy policymaking, and how your Public Power is working to meet this challenge. Head to nechamber.com/foundation for a copy of the entire study. As always, please call or stop in with any questions.

The wholesale cost of power for PCRPPD is increasing by 2% year-over-year from 2024. Your February 20th billing will reflect this increase.

Inflationary increases on material costs and wages are unavoidable, but please know we look for all opportunities to save on expenses in an effort to reduce the impact to rates. We are currently working with FEMA for reimbursement on costs resulting from May storm repairs. We are also finalizing details of a significant Federal grant award for a transmission project that will greatly improve the resiliency of PCRPPD’s transmission system. We hope to share more details with you soon on this exciting opportunity.

Our goal is to safely provide reliable, affordable power. All PCRPPD directors and employees are also PCRPPD customers, and we feel any price increase along with everyone else. Public Power is owned, managed, and operated by its customer-owners. PCRPPD is not in business to make profits for shareholders; any margins at the end of the year are reinvested in maintaining, strengthening, and growing your electric system. We will diligently continue to work to provide you with the best value possible in your electric service.

Please reach out to us with any questions, learn about ways you can save on your electric bill, or discuss the latest energy savings advice.

The secret’s out. Nebraska, it just might be for everyone. After 20 years of small, organic load growth, Nebraska’s demand for electricity is skyrocketing.  Over the next few years, NPPD, PCRPPD’s Wholesale power provider, anticipates the need for an additional 700-4,000 mWs of electricity. This is due to the increasing electrification of transportation and equipment as well as the growing number of data centers, crypto-mining, and bio-energy agriculture-related industries that are being incentivized through the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) and Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA). This increased demand for electricity also brings economic growth and job opportunities to our local communities.

Nebraska is completely served by a customer-owned public power system, making it a favorable landing spot for new and expanding businesses. Public Power was created with an obligation to provide reliable electricity at cost with net revenue reinvested into infrastructure or additional generation capacity, not inflated for shareholder pockets. The US Energy Information Agency has ranked Nebraska at the top of the list nationally for the lowest electricity prices and highest reliability statistics.

To meet this demand for electricity, NPPD has applied to extend the operating license at Cooper Nuclear Station. This carbon-free resource provides the majority of baseload generation, along with Gerald Gentlemen Station. NPPD is also planning additional generation capacity, including combustion turbines, RICE (reciprocating internal combustion engine) units, and battery storage. These additions will enhance NPPD’s diverse generation fleet and provide operating flexibility, reliable, and affordable power.

Providing low-cost power is a high priority for all Nebraska Public Power entities, and we are all working together to ensure the new generation costs will be kept to a minimum for our customer-owners. This is not a new growth scenario for Nebraska; Public Power tackled the same load growth issue 40-50 years ago when Cooper Nuclear and Gerald Gentleman stations were built. Over the course of this year, we have been meeting with NPPD to discuss potential Wholesale Power Contract extensions that would allow the lowest cost financing and continue to provide the best value for your energy dollars.

If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to give us a call.