About Our Plan
Our plan includes several key elements, and each plays an important role in meeting the needs and desires of the customers and communities we serve. Environmental Improvements. New Wind Generation. New Coal-Fired Plant. Infrastructure Improvements. Affordability, Efficiency and Demand Response Programs. |
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As part of our plan, we will invest more than $420 million over the next five years in technologies to reduce certain air emissions at our existing power plants in Missouri and Kansas. These upgrades will ensure that we meet or exceed existing and anticipated federal air quality standards, ahead of schedule, which will contribute to improved air quality across the entire region. 
Our 100.5-megawatt Spearville Wind Energy Facility is located in Ford County near Dodge County, Kansas. The facility's 67 towers generate enough intermittent power to serve up to 33,000 homes. The Spearville facility was fully operational in October 2006. Wind is an essential element in our plan because it is a renewable resource of energy that does not create pollution of any kind.
Our plan calls for the construction of a new 850-megawatt coal-fired plant on the existing Iatan plant site in Missouri. Meeting the needs of customers in Missouri and Kansas, it will also have the latest technology to produce far more power with dramatically reduced emissions. Coal is cheaper and less subject to price volatility than other fuels, and is in abundant supply. A new plant is an essential element in our plan because it will help keep energy prices affordable.
KCP&L currently operates one of the most reliable networks in the country, meaning that the risk of outages for our customers is much lower than for customers in other cities. We want to keep it that way. Another element of our plan involves infrastructure improvements to strengthen the overall reliability of our system and network. Our plan includes constructing, replacing and/or upgrading existing transmission and distribution facilities to accommodate new generation, and incorporate new technologies for faster diagnosis and repair of service interruptions.
The final element of our plan involves the proposed introduction of a series of unique programs designed to help customers use energy more effectively. These include proposed affordability programs for low-income families; weatherization programs; high-efficiency lighting and appliance systems; online energy analysis tools; and energy training for customers. Putting more control over energy management in the hands of our customers has the potential to reduce overall demand.