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Who we are Great River Energy is a not-for-profit electric cooperative owned by its 28 member cooperatives. We generate and transmit electricity for those members, located in the outer-ring suburbs of the Twin Cities up to the Arrowhead region of Minnesota and down to the farmland region in the southwestern portion of the state. Learn more about Great River Energy by watching our video. |
Great River Energy’s cooperative structure has proven to be central to our continued success in delivering on our mission. Collaboration with our members, stakeholders, community leaders and employees has made us the strong and respected organization we are.
Like other cooperatives, Great River Energy exists to serve its membership and is dedicated to helping the communities in which it operates. We are member-controlled and governed by a democratically elected board of directors who are electric cooperative members themselves. Board members establish rates and develop policies in the best interest of Great River Energy and its members.
Collectively, our member cooperatives serve nearly 645,000 member-consumers — or about 1.7 million people. We are the second largest electric power supplier in Minnesota. Great River Energy owns and operates 11 power plants which generate more than 2,800 megawatts (MW) of electricity, plus we purchase additional power from several wind farms and other generating facilities. Our generation capability consists of a diverse mix of baseload and peaking power plants — including coal, biomass, natural gas and oil plants.
Great River Energy owns and operates nearly 4,500 miles of transmission line and owns or partly owns more than 100 transmission substations. Great River Energy’s more than 875 employees are dedicated to serving our member cooperatives with integrity and accountability in an environmentally sensitive manner. It’s the nature of being a cooperative.
Our missionProvide members with reliable energy at affordable rates in harmony with a sustainable environment.
Leading, collaborating, energizing… to benefit our members and our world.
Great River Energy is dedicated to serving our 28 member cooperatives. We conduct our business in a cost-effective manner and ensure our members benefit from our efficient power generation resources and reliable transmission system. Our sound environmental policy also contributes to our competitive strength and drives our decision-making.
Great River Energy has adopted a decision-making formula that gives equal importance to our three highest priorities: affordable rates, reliable service and environmental stewardship--- it’s called our triple bottom line. Every decision we make as an organization is carefully evaluated and held up to these three standards by working to balance each.
These priorities serve as guiding principles for all of our actions. Our organization will do nothing for rates and reliability without assessing environmental implications. But, by the same token, we won’t do anything for the environment without fully considering the impact on rates and reliability. Ultimately, it is about conducting business in a way that benefits both sustainability and the bottom-line.
In other words, everything we do as a company is for the good of our members … and our world.
