News Connections

The N.D. Public Service Commission approved plans Aug. 7 for what will become North Dakota’s largest single power plant. Basin Electric Power Cooperative will invest nearly $4 billion to build a 1,490-megawatt (MW) natural gas-fueled combined-cycle power plant near Epping in Williams County.

The plan calls for two 745-MW units to be built in two sections, with the first generating power in 2029 and the second in 2030. Once completed, it will be one of the largest electric generation projects in Basin Electric’s history.

A new bipartisan bill in Congress would streamline the Federal Emergency Management Agency and speed up delivery of crucial disaster relief funds. The Fixing Emergency Management for Americans (FEMA) Act of 2025 also preserves the agency’s Public Assistance (PA) program, which provides critical funding for electric cooperatives to restore power and rebuild their systems after natural disasters.

America’s electric cooperatives are applauding several federal actions that will help co-ops meet the growing power demand and ensure always-available power remains reliable and affordable.
 

In the height of the 1980s farm crisis, Sarah Vogel became a household name in North Dakota. The soft-spoken attorney from Bismarck who took on the U.S. Department of Agriculture and won – righting injustices caused by the Farmers Home Administration when the agency began aggressively foreclosing on farm families without due process – was inducted into the N.D. Agriculture Hall of Fame March 5, after North Dakota Farmers Union (NDFU) nominated her for the prestigious honor.

Electric cooperative leaders joined President Donald Trump at the White House April 8, as he announced several executive actions aimed at protecting coal-fired power plants and the reliability of the nation’s electric grid. North Dakota’s Basin Electric Power Cooperative CEO and General Manager Todd Brickhouse, Bismarck, and Minnkota Power Cooperative President and CEO Mac McLennan, Grand Forks, were among those in attendance.

The North Dakota Association of Rural Electric Cooperatives presented six awards during its annual meeting Feb. 11, recognizing individuals for their generous contributions to the state’s electric cooperatives and communities they serve. Honorees included:

• Bob Grant – Cooperative Leadership, Mountrail-Williams Electric Cooperative

• Lauren Klewin – Cooperative Leadership, Slope Electric Cooperative

• Erin Oban – Helping Hand, former USDA Rural Development state director and state senator

Are you a small- or mid-sized farm or food business and looking to expand? Do you need additional equipment, staff time, software or business planning? The Business Builder grant offered by the U.S. Department of Agriculture North Central Regional Food Business Center (RFBC) may be able to help.

When North Dakota’s 69th Legislative Assembly convened Jan. 7, legislators were welcomed by Gov. Kelly Armstrong, who delivered his first state of the state address to a joint session of the Legislature. In his address, Armstrong laid out his property tax relief and reform plan, devised with input from legislators.

A North Dakota woman is being inducted into the Cooperative Hall of Fame.

On Dec. 6, 2024, the Cooperative Development Foundation announced Lori Capouch as a 2025 inductee. The Cooperative Hall of Fame is the highest honor bestowed on individuals who have made outstanding contributions to cooperatives. She is the first woman from North Dakota to receive the prestigious honor.

While regulatory and industry initiatives have improved winter readiness, many regions of the country are once again at elevated risk of electricity supply shortfalls in the event of extreme weather, the North American Reliability Corporation (NERC) states in its 2024-25 Winter Reliability Assessment released Nov. 14.