News > A partner that cares: Sustainability at Great River Energy

A partner that cares: Sustainability at Great River Energy

Photo caption: Great River Energy employees strive to provide member-owner cooperatives, and their members, with safe, reliable and affordable energy with concern for community and environmental stewardship for current and future generations.

April 25, 2020

As a cooperative, Great River Energy — Stearns Electric Association’s wholesale power provider — is deeply committed to sustainability through solid environmental policies and practices and helping to build strong communities.

Sustainability has been at the heart of the organization since it was formed in 1999. Great River Energy commits diverse resources to deliver on its promise to provide its member-owner cooperatives with affordable, reliable energy in harmony with a sustainable environment.

Great River Energy provides energy through a diverse portfolio of power supply resources and a dependable transmission system, all of which serve the region’s energy market. Great River Energy committed to reaching 50% renewable energy by 2030. The cooperative is on schedule to reach that goal, with plans to sustain 30% renewable energy in 2020.

As a business model, cooperatives are designed to support their communities. Great River Energy employees embody this commitment to community principle. Employees regularly rally their peers to raise funds or dedicate time to important causes. Over time, that culture of community adds up to a meaningful and lasting impact.

Some examples of sustainability in action at Great River Energy:

• 2% of income donated to community causes
• Employee volunteerism through a dedicated Week of Service, Habitat for Humanity and more
• Nearly $80,000 raised for nonprofits through the 2019 employee giving campaign
• Environmental management systems and ISO 14001 registration
• Food, book, supply and blood drives
• Economic development efforts in member-owner cooperative service territories
• Community-based sponsorships and contributions
• DryFining™, a lignite fuel enhancement process making coal cleaner and more efficient
• A culture of safety

“We’re deeply committed to sustainability,” said Erik Heinen, Great River Energy’s environmental and sustainability administrator. “More and more, individuals and companies are expecting that their power providers have a clear commitment to the environment, the communities they live in and serve, and their employees. We want to continue to provide Stearns Electric’s end-use consumer, commercial and industrial members with affordable, reliable power in a sustainable manner.”

Great River Energy has delivered on its commitment to sustainability for more than 20 years and will continue to do so for the benefit of its member-owner cooperatives and the communities they serve.