Kootenai Electric Cooperative Secures Long-term Power Supply through New Power Project

Rathdrum, ID — April 23, 2026 — Kootenai Electric Cooperative (KEC) has announced plans to participate in a new advanced natural gas electric generation facility, marking an important step in ensuring reliable and affordable electricity for its members into the future as regional demand for electricity continues to rise.

The facility will be built in Rathdrum, Idaho, by PNGC Power, which KEC is a member-owner of, and Kindle Energy to provide a dispatchable resource that can generate power when needed to help meet growing demand across the Pacific Northwest.

Planned as a state-of-the-art combined-cycle facility, the project is expected to be among the most efficient and lowest-emitting gas-fired generation resources in the United States. By using advanced generation technology, the plant is intended to produce more electricity with less fuel and water than older thermal resources, lowering emissions intensity while providing the dependable power needed to support a modern grid. Purchasing a portion of the power generated by this facility is a crucial part of KEC’s long-term power supply strategy.

“Our members depend on reliable electricity every day, and it plays a vital role in supporting the economic well-being of our region,” said KEC’s General Manager, Doug Elliott. “This agreement ensures we have the resources necessary to keep the lights on, particularly during times of high demand or when other generation sources are unavailable. Equally important, it helps keep our members’ rates as affordable as possible well into the future.”

The Pacific Northwest is facing a widening gap between electricity supply and demand driven by population growth, increased electrification, and reduced availability or retirement of existing power resources. This has created increasing pressure on the regional electric grid, particularly during extreme weather events. The addition of new, on-demand generation such as this will help address these challenges.

“Specifically, building this resource within Kootenai County will also bolster grid resilience and reliability locally, benefiting our community,” said Elliott.

KEC is one of several regional cooperatives participating in the project through PNGC Power. This partnership allows KEC to share costs and risks with other member cooperatives while securing access to critical energy resources.

“Across the region, utilities are facing the reality that more resources are needed to ensure reliable power,” said Bill Swick, KEC Board Chair. “This project allows us to take control of our energy future rather than leaving our members exposed to an increasingly volatile market.”

As a not-for-profit electric cooperative, KEC is fortunate to have preference rights to hydropower produced by the Federal Columbia River Power System, purchased from the Bonneville Power Administration. This essential resource is carbon free, one of the most affordable in the country, and will continue to serve a significant portion of KEC’s power supply requirements. However, the amount of low-cost federal hydropower the co-op can access is not enough to meet KEC’s full power requirements. The gas plant being constructed, along with other resources being developed by PNGC elsewhere, will provide the additional power generation resources KEC’s members require. Crucially, it will also provide additional certainty when hydro conditions or environmental regulations limit hydro generation or when weather events cause power markets to tighten and prices to spike.

“This project is about serving Northwest communities with the reliable and affordable energy they will need in the years ahead,” said Jessica Matlock, Chief Executive Officer of PNGC Power. “Supporting this project will help ensure our members have power they can count on at prices they can afford.”

Natural gas generation plays a critical role in maintaining grid reliability by providing flexible, around-the-clock power. This virtue enables it to supply additional power during periods when renewable resources, such as wind and solar, are not capable of producing.

“This is about making sure we have the right balance,” said Swick. “By combining renewables, conservation, and firm generation resources, we can create a diverse energy portfolio that will continue to deliver reliable, affordable power to our members.”

The project is expected to take approximately six years to design and construct and will provide 590 megawatts (MW) of generation capacity, or enough electricity to power about 500,000 average homes. KEC’s share of the plant will be 60 MW.

“Our responsibility is to plan for the future, and this project helps us do exactly that,” Elliott said. “This is one part of a broader strategy to ensure we can continue delivering safe and reliable power and provide our members with rate stability in an uncertain energy future.”