Dannie Buelt to head up OPPD’s new growth business unit focused on reliably growing the grid

During this week’s committee meetings for the Omaha Public Power District Board of Directors, the utility announced a new business unit that will focus on meeting surging energy demand.  

At tonight’s monthly meeting, directors approved the appointment of Dannie Buelt to lead the new unit as chief growth officer. His team will handle development of utility infrastructure, as well as long-term planning, nuclear planning, land management and real property, and construction to meet surging energy demand. The new role and reorganization will take effect in January. 

Buelt is a well-established leader at OPPD, having served as supervisor of Substation Engineering, manager of Transmission Engineering and director of Engineering before being promoted to senior director of Major Projects. 

“As I was evaluating the best approach to fill the role, it became clear that we already had the talent we needed within the utility,” said President and CEO Javier Fernandez. 

Fernandez said Buelt’s knowledge and experience will continue to serve the utility well as it works to ensure a future-ready posture. 

"The position requires great knowledge and great relationships, and Dannie already has that – within OPPD and among our contracted work partners,” Fernandez said. 

Buelt began his career at OPPD as an engineer in Substation Engineering and has served on numerous teams and committees throughout his 24 years, including lead positions in Enterprise Risk Management, Business Unit Review Committee, LEAN Cost and Process Initiative and Engineer Council. Prior to OPPD, Dannie worked as a project engineer at Black & Veatch, leading telecommunications projects for fiber and wireless systems. 

He holds a Bachelor of Science Degree in Electrical Engineering from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln and is a licensed professional engineer in the states of Nebraska and Kansas.  

Midtown Transmission Project update 

Utility leaders also announced the selection of a final route for the Aksarben to Midtown segment of its Arboretum to Midtown Transmission Project. The segment includes three miles of new 161 kV transmission line from 72nd and Pine streets to Saddle Creek Road and Leavenworth Street. 

OPPD held a series of public meetings to give those who live and work in the area opportunities to learn about the project, ask questions, and weigh in on route preferences. The final route selected runs along Center Street and Saddle Creek Road to minimize residential disruption, based on community input.  

The utility will continue to study the best route options for the final section of this project, which will connect the line to a substation on Jones Street. A final decision for that stretch is expected in early 2027. 

The board also approved of the use of eminent domain for this project, if needed. Construction is slated to begin in 2028 with completion anticipated by the end of that year. 

In other action, the board: 

• Approved the board meeting agenda. 

• Accepted the monitoring reports for Strategic Directive (SD) 7: Environmental Stewardship and SD-13: Stakeholder Outreach & Engagement. 

• Approved a rate schedule for OPPD’s Time of Use Rate Program Pilot that will provide customers who opt in to the pilot reduced rates for using electricity during off-peak hours. The board considered public feedback received over the past month at OPPDCommunityConnect.com prior to voting. 

• Awarded a contract in the amount of $2,544,238 to Bauer Underground for the purchase, design, material procurement, and construction services needed for a new buried fiber route that will support new generation and transmission lines being built within OPPD’s service territory. 

• Authorized an increase in the district’s total credit facilities to support the Commercial Paper Program and provide additional liquidity. 

• Approved a revised 2026 Corporate Operating Plan expenditure amount. 

Next board meetings  

The next all-committees meeting will be held in person Tuesday, Nov. 17, 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, Nov. 19, 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. The public can attend virtually via the meeting link and instructions at OPPD.com/BoardAgenda, beginning at 4:45 p.m.