Frequently Asked Questions - Comprehensive Energy Plan
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Why does our community need a long-term energy plan? The Kansas City metro area is currently experiencing rapid growth and development. According to the Mid-America Regional Council, the area's population is expected to grow by approximately 20% over the next 25 years. Much of this growth is expected to be in KCP&L's service area, including parts of Johnson County, Platte County and downtown. What is the cost of not doing this? If we hadn't proactively secured a low cost source of electricity generation, the region could have faced shortages later or ended up paying higher costs by depending more on natural gas and oil-fired generation and power purchases from the primarily natural gas-driven wholesale electricity market. This has happened with other utilities and we didn't want it to happen here. How does KCP&L's plan affect the local economy? This framework benefits the local economy in several ways. First, it creates new jobs. During the four years it takes to build a new coal plant, up to 1,000 jobs will be created at the peak of the construction activity, plus 50 to 100 permanent positions once the plant is finished. That translates into approximately $300 million in direct payroll over the four-year period for the Kansas City region, as well as significant tax revenues. |