OPPD shares progress on generation & transmission buildouts to meet growing energy demand

Omaha Public Power District is making great strides adding power generation and transmission infrastructure to meet rapidly growing electricity demand. Utility leaders shared a progress report with its board of directors at their committee meetings this week. 

OPPD is adding three new natural gas turbines at its Cass County Balancing Station and one at Turtle Creek Balancing Station in Sarpy County. The projects are 43% complete. Combined, the new generation turbines will produce about 900 megawatts – roughly the peak summer load of the city of Lincoln. 

Dannie Buelt, senior director of Major Projects, noted that the work has not been without challenges, such as tariffs and a skilled worker shortage. The latter has been an issue particularly in the Cass County plant’s expansion. 

“Like many other utilities, we have had to work through labor shortages, since the kind of skilled workers we need, such as pipefitters and electricians, are in demand with generation being added across the country to meet growing demand. The market has become extremely competitive.” 

Buelt noted that OPPD’s contracted partners for the projects, Kiewit Corporation and Siemens Energy, have done a good job coming up with creative solutions to recruiting and securing a workforce. 

OPPD’s renewable energy portfolio continues to expand with the following projects underway: 

• Pierce County Energy Center: OPPD has a purchased power agreement (PPA) in place with NextEra Energy Resources for this project, slated for completion by May 2027. It will provide the utility with 420 MW of solar generation and 170 MW of battery storage. For comparison, the largest renewable facility currently in the Southwest Power Pool footprint is 250 MW. 

• Burt County Solar: OPPD has a PPA with Sandhills Energy for this 250 MW facility, expected to be online in 2029. This project represents one of the largest solar installations for the Nebraska-based Sandhills Energy portfolio.
  

With these additions, OPPD will have 756 MW of solar, 171 MW of battery storage, and 1,862 MW of wind generation resources. The utility continues to seek more opportunities to expand its diverse energy portfolio, with a goal of adding a total of 2.5 gigawatts within the coming years. To learn more, visit OPPDCommunityConnect.com/generation. 

Transmission projects 
As the utility builds its generation capacity, it is also building and modernizing transmission infrastructure needed to carry that generation to customers. 

The utility is ahead of schedule with construction of the Cass to Sarpy Transmission Project, a 23-mile line running between the Cass County and Sarpy County power plants. The line is expected to be in service by the end of the year. It will help to ensure the electric system is more reliable and capable of withstanding larger peak loads, supporting growth and long-range planning. 

OPPD is also making good progress on the North Douglas County Transmission Line, consisting of three segments. The first – a new 2.3-mile line between 114th and 140th and State streets – was energized ahead of schedule in June. Work continues on segments two — relocating an existing distribution line between 101st and State and 60th and Garvin streets — and three — rebuilding an existing transmission line along Interstate 680 from 108th and Blondo to 101st and State streets. The infrastructure has been in place since the 1970s and needs an upgrade to meet growing demand across all customer classes. 

Public engagement is crucial to planning major transmission projects. The utility is continuing to engage the public as routing is underway for three more projects: Bellevue, Arboretum to Midtown, and Cass to Nebraska City. To learn more about these and other current transmission projects, visit OPPDCommunityConnect.com/transmission-projects. 

In other action, the board: 

• Approved the May and June 2026 financial reports, June 2026 meeting minutes, and August 20, 2026, agenda. 
• Received the monthly President’s Report. 

Next board meetings  
The next all-committees meeting will be held in person Tuesday, September 15, at 10 a.m. at OPPD administrative offices, 1919 Aksarben Dr. in Omaha, and virtually via Webex. The meeting link and instructions will be available at OPPD.com/CommitteeAgenda, beginning at about 9:45 a.m.  

The next monthly board meeting is Thursday, September 17, at 5 p.m., in person at the Legislative Chamber of the Omaha-Douglas Civic Center, 1819 Farnam St., as well as virtually via Webex. See instructions for joining at  OPPD.com/BoardAgenda, beginning at 4:45 p.m.