Polk County RPPD Partners with Today’s Power, Inc. to build 1MW solar array.

STROMSBURG, NE —Polk County Rural Public Power District breaks ground on a new 1MW solar site. The array's power will be distributed directly to Polk County RPPD’s customer-owners in the form of low fixed-cost energy. The solar array will be located in Stromsburg, Nebraska in collaboration with the City of Stromsburg.

As part of the Nebraska Renewable Energy Initiative, Today's Power, Inc. (TPI) of North Little Rock, Arkansas was chosen by Polk County RPPD along with Norris Public Power District and Howard Greeley Public Power District. Under the terms of a 25-year Power Purchase Agreement (PPA), TPI will manage the engineering, procurement, construction, operations, and maintenance of the solar sites. For the length of the PPA, the PPD’s will purchase electricity produced by the solar field at a fixed-low cost.

Barb Fowler, General Manager of Polk County Rural PPD, said, “Supplemental renewable energy provides us resource diversity from carbon-free generation that could also help shave peak demand in the summer. Reliability is a priority, but utilizing renewable energy when it's available is the right thing to do. We are also excited to help the City of Stromsburg reach their local renewable generation goal. This collaborative effort exemplifies what it means to be Public Power.”

This project features advanced single-axis tracking systems consisting of 1.4 MW of DC installed and 1.0 MW of AC. The solar array, comprised of over 2,000 solar panels, will offset 1,707 metric tons of greenhouse gas emissions annually. All the energy produced by the solar facility will be consumed locally by PCRPPD and the City of Stromsburg customers. Chris Heath, Construction and Consulting Manager for Today’s Power, estimates the site is to be completed in Summer of 2023.

“We thank Polk County Rural Public Power District in allowing Today’s Power, Inc. to provide utility scale solar projects within the Polk County Rural Public Power District service territory. As a result of working with the various PPDs in Nebraska, Today’s Power has been able to provide competitive pricing and work toward timely installations at each of the sites located within the State.” Said TPI president, Derek Dyson.

About Polk County Rural PPD:

Polk County Rural Public Power District, headquartered in Stromsburg, Nebraska, is a not-for-profit electric distribution utility that delivers safe, reliable, and affordable electricity to its customers in Polk and parts of Merrick, Nance, and York Counties. Established in 1935, PCRPPD serves 5,094 customers through operating 1,011 miles of distribution line and 111 miles of sub-transmission line.