News & Events

Every two months, OMPA prepares a newsletter, the Outlet.

It contains information on changes in the electric municipal industry, OMPA and member cities events and activities, updates on policies and regulations at the state and federal level and more. OMPA sends this newsletter to city staff and elected and appointed officials.

Please view our May-June 2024 edition below.

The North Fork Solar Farm was officially dedicated on June 26 at a ceremony attended by a variety of industry leaders and elected officials.

Bruce Rew with the Southwest Power Pool confirmed to those in attendance that the 120-megawatt solar farm is now the largest in SPP’s 14-state footprint.

The facility is the latest resource addition for the Oklahoma Municipal Power Authority (OMPA) and marks the first time solar will be part of its generating mix. The farm is located in southwest Oklahoma in Kiowa County on approximately 1,012 acres.

“This is an exciting day for us. It marks the continued evolution of our power supply,” OMPA General Manager Dave Osburn said.

The solar farm went online nearly three weeks prior to the official dedication. It was developed by Recurrent Energy, a subsidiary of Canadian Solar, Inc. OMPA has a 15-year power purchase agreement for 100 percent of the generation produced from the project.

“Today, with the addition of this solar farm, we’re now over 600 megawatts of solar and I just checked before I got here, and our meter shows this running at 119.2 megawatts as we speak,” said Rew, who is the Senior Vice President, Operations for the SPP, which represents the region’s power market and balancing authority. “As SPP continues its transition in the market, we will use every megawatt we can to deliver clean power to customers on a daily basis. And we really appreciate OMPA’s engagement with our organization.”

Osburn told those in attendance, which included members of the Authority’s Board of Directors and past General Managers, that the solar farm contributes to OMPA’s generating diversity, which has distinct benefits.

“Our diversity provides several things. One is risk-management and not being solely dependent on one resource,” Osburn said. “Approximately half of our energy now comes from fixed price contracts, as well. And that’s good, because it helps manage some of our fuel volatility moving forward. This will provide long-term, low-cost energy.

“Sometimes they ask why we’re doing this. We’ve done wind and hydro, and now solar. A lot of it is economics. It’s not based on some philosophical reasoning, it’s because it makes sense to our member cities.”

OMPA’s resource mix in 2023 was led by natural gas at 55 percent. Its combined renewable generation equaled 25 percent of the mix, with energy coming from wind, hydro and landfill-to-gas. Three different coal plants the Authority owned a share in closed in the last six years, as coal dipped to 9 percent of the resource mix in 2023.

OMPA’s demand has remained high, as its 2022 peak was the highest of the last decade and its overall energy delivered was third-highest during that same time period. The Authority serves 42 municipal-owned electric systems in Oklahoma, as well as one in Arkansas and another in Texas.

Michael Arndt, North American President for Recurrent Energy, boasted of the project’s economic development, which not only includes millions of dollars in sales and property taxes, but approximately 500 jobs created during construction, which began in 2023.

North Fork Solar represents Recurrent Energy’s first project in Oklahoma and first project in the SPP.

Every two months, OMPA prepares a newsletter, the Outlet.

It contains information on changes in the electric municipal industry, OMPA and member cities events and activities, updates on policies and regulations at the state and federal level and more. OMPA sends this newsletter to city staff and elected and appointed officials.

Please view our March-April 2024 edition below.

Fitch Ratings has affirmed both the Issuer Default Rating (IDR) and the rating on Oklahoma Municipal Power Authority’s (OMPA) outstanding $459.9 million of outstanding power supply system revenue bonds (2014A, 2014B, 2016A, 2019A, 2021A and 2021B) at ‘A’.

Fitch does not rate the authority’s $70 million of outstanding series 2010B revenue bonds.

The Rating Outlook is Stable.

The rating reflects the very strong credit quality of OMPA’s two largest participants, the city of Edmond, OK and Ponca City, OK, and considers the authority’s leverage profile, which has improved in the past two years after operating income weakened in fiscal 2021 due to the financial impact of Winter Storm Uri.

Fitch expects OMPA’s leverage ratio, measured as net adjusted debt to adjusted funds available for debt service, could rise slightly over the medium term if the utility moves forward with its preliminary plan to debt-finance the construction a new generation resource, the type and scope of which will be determined following completion of an updated integrated resource plan in 2024. The new resource is subject to approval from OMPA’s board of directors and management has conservatively estimated a $150 million debt issuance in fiscal 2026 to fund the construction.

OMPA’s rating also continues to be supported by a well-diversified power supply that historically provided low-cost and reliable capacity and energy, and all-requirements power sales contracts (PSCs) that require the 42 participating utilities to purchase all their energy needs from OMPA.

Every two months, OMPA prepares a newsletter, the Outlet.

It contains information on changes in the electric municipal industry, OMPA and member cities events and activities, updates on policies and regulations at the state and federal level and more. OMPA sends this newsletter to city staff and elected and appointed officials.

Please view our January-February 2024 edition below.

The Oklahoma Municipal Power Authority (OMPA) Board of Directors approved at its February meeting a plan to help recover expenditures from extraordinary costs incurred from recent winter storm Gerri.

The plan approved largely avoids any impact on rates, thanks to utilization of the Authority’s Rate Stabilization Fund.

Power suppliers throughout the region were forced to deal with natural gas prices topping as much as 10 times beyond normal during the three-day-holiday weekend of Jan. 13-16. OMPA was able to take advantage of a variety of strategies – including calling on natural gas storage, hedging and purchasing physical deliveries at fixed prices – to avoid some of the expense but was still left with approximately $3.53 million in unexpected cost.

The Board agreed to fund $2.9 million of the unexpected costs through OMPA’s Rate Stabilization Fund, allowing the fuel cost for January to remain near what was anticipated.

“The OMPA Board electing to use reserve funds to cover the cost of severe storms is a great example of the value of Public Power and being a member of OMPA,” General Manager Dave Osburn said.

The Board then voted to replenish OMPA’s Rate Stabilization Fund with $4.3 million from excess revenues from 2023. OMPA’s average monthly cost to cities in 2023 was the lowest since 2019, leaving the Authority with lower-than-expected costs to the membership. A further $3.5 million in excess revenue from 2023 was also placed into the Decommissioning Fund, upon direction of the Board.

The Rate Stabilization Fund was previously called upon following winter storm Uri in 2021. OMPA incurred around $64 million in unexpected costs following that storm, but was again able to avoid raising wholesale rates by utilizing the fund and reissuing bonds.

Richard Raupe of Okeene and Kenzie Wheeler of Duncan were each approved to seats on the OMPA Board of Directors at its monthly meeting in December.

Raupe is the Town Administrator for Okeene. His career in municipal government spans more than 30 years, including stints as both a town administrator and mayor. Okeene is the third community where he has served as town administrator.  Raupe has also served on numerous boards and authorities during his long career. He fills the position vacated by Dale Bunn of Purcell. The move is effective Jan. 1, 2024 and lasts through the remainder of the term at the 2024 Annual Meeting. This is the third Okeene representative to serve on the OMPA Board.

Wheeler is the current Interim City Manager at Duncan, due to the previous city manager – Kimberly Meek – taking the same position at the City of Stillwater. Wheeler had previously served as the city’s Assistant City Manager. The Board seat’s term lasts to the 2025 Annual Meeting.

A wholesale power supplier with 42 municipal members throughout Oklahoma, OMPA is governed by its 11-member Board of Directors, who are elected by representatives of the members. The board is comprised of elected officials, city managers and others who are involved in the operating or governing of their electric systems. Board members serve staggered three-year terms, with one-third of them coming up for election each year.

Jennifer Smith has been named the Assistant General Manager for the Oklahoma Municipal Power Authority (OMPA).

The Assistant General Manager’s role was created to assist the General Manager in leading the organization. OMPA’s current General Manager, Dave Osburn, has been in that position since 2013.

Smith, who joined OMPA in 2008, will continue to also serve as the Authority’s Director of Member Services, a title she has held since 2021.

Originally from Oklahoma, Smith joined OMPA as a Member Services Representative and later took over as Government Relations Representative in 2015, monitoring state and federal legislation for the Authority. She was then named as the successor to retiring long-time Director of Member Services Drake Rice, first serving as Manager of Member Services and then Director.

Smith was the 2022 recipient of the Drake Rice Customer Service Award and serves on a variety of boards and committees, including on the board of the American Public Power Association’s Demonstration of Energy & Efficiency Developments (DEED) and as OMPA’s ex-officio on the Municipal Electric Systems of Oklahoma (MESO) Board. She is also part of the APPA’s Mutual Aid Working Group, assisting Oklahoma’s Public Power utilities during emergencies.

OMPA, which was created in 1981 by the Oklahoma State Legislature, has had just three General Managers in its history.

Every two months, OMPA prepares a newsletter, the Outlet.

It contains information on changes in the electric municipal industry, OMPA and member cities events and activities, updates on policies and regulations at the state and federal level and more. OMPA sends this newsletter to city staff and elected and appointed officials.

Please view our September-October 2023 edition below.

The Oklahoma Municipal Power Authority (OMPA) has announced a project is in development to add solar to the Authority’s generating resource mix for the first time ever.

The North Fork Solar project will add 120 megawatts of capacity to OMPA’s power supply. The solar farm will be located in Kiowa County in southwest Oklahoma off U.S. Highway 62 near OMPA members Frederick and Altus. It is expected to go online in 2024.

Recurrent Energy, a subsidiary of Canadian Solar Inc., is the developer for the project. OMPA has reached a 15-year power purchase agreement for 100 percent of the generation produced by the project.

“OMPA is extremely excited to add North Fork Solar to our portfolio of energy resources. This will continue to diversify our energy mix and increase the amount of non-carbon resources for the benefit of our member cities,” OMPA General Manager Dave Osburn said.

OMPA’s resource mix in 2022 was led by natural gas at 46 percent. Its combined renewable generation equaled 27 percent of the mix, with energy coming from wind, hydro and landfill-to-gas. Three different coal plants the Authority owned a share in closed in the last five years, as coal dipped to 15 percent of the resource mix in 2022.

OMPA’s demand has remained high, as its 2022 peak was the highest of the last decade and its overall energy delivered was third-highest during that same time period. The Authority serves 42 municipal-owned electric systems in Oklahoma, as well as two in Arkansas and another in Texas.

Recurrent Energy selected Blattner Energy as the engineering, procurement and construction partner for North Fork Solar. Once construction is completed, Recurrent Energy will own and operate the project through its Power Services business as a part of its commitment to growing the number of renewable energy projects in its operating assets portfolio.

“Oklahoma has long been known for its rich wind resource, and now OMPA’s customers will benefit from low-cost solar energy to complement the wind energy in their portfolio,” Canadian Solar Chairman and CEO Dr. Shawn Qu said.

Every two months, OMPA prepares a newsletter, the Outlet.

It contains information on changes in the electric municipal industry, OMPA and member cities events and activities, updates on policies and regulations at the state and federal level and more. OMPA sends this newsletter to city staff and elected and appointed officials.

Please view our July-August 2023 edition below.

Every two months, OMPA prepares a newsletter, the Outlet.

It contains information on changes in the electric municipal industry, OMPA and member cities events and activities, updates on policies and regulations at the state and federal level and more. OMPA sends this newsletter to city staff and elected and appointed officials.

Please view our May-June 2023 edition below.

Oklahoma Municipal Power Authority (OMPA) General Manager David W. Osburn began his term as Chairman of the Board of Directors for the American Public Power Association (APPA) at the association’s national conference in Seattle on June 21.

The Chairman term will last for one year.

The APPA is the national advocacy and advisory group for the nation’s 2,000-plus Public Power utilities. Association board members are chosen to represent 10 regions across the country. Osburn was elected to its Board in 2020. He also previously served on the APPA Board of Directors from 2004-2007.

In a release announcing Osburn’s appointment, the APPA noted his speech to the national conference attendees:

“Osburn spoke of his relationship with public power, referencing his first position in Crawfordsville, Indiana, as the place where he fell in love with public power. Speaking about his time there, Osburn said, ‘I learned what it’s like to be part of a community.’

Describing his vision for the coming year as chair, Osburn emphasized the need for public power to ‘celebrate the past but focus on the future.’ He cited examples of service through innovation at the City of Comanche (900 meters), which installed a DC fast EV charger to demonstrate its commitment to innovation, and Ponca City (16,000 meters), which introduced free citywide WiFi, as well as the Northern California Power Agency, a joint action agency with 14 members, which leveraged an APPA Demonstration of Energy Efficiency and Developments program grant to research green hydrogen production, generation, and storage.”

Osburn came to OMPA in 2007, after serving as General Manager of Richmond Power & Light in Indiana. He first was Director of Operations at OMPA, before becoming Assistant General Manager in 2009 and then took over as General Manager in August of 2013.

Osburn has also served on APPA’s Executive Committee, Awards Committee, Business Planning Committee, Strategic Planning Committee, CEO Climate Change and Generation Policy Committee. He also serves on the Southwest Power Pool’s (SPP) Board of Directors/Members Committee.

Every two months, OMPA prepares a newsletter, the Outlet.

It contains information on changes in the electric municipal industry, OMPA and member cities events and activities, updates on policies and regulations at the state and federal level and more. OMPA sends this newsletter to city staff and elected and appointed officials.

Please view our March-April 2023 edition below.

Every two months, OMPA prepares a newsletter, the Outlet.

It contains information on changes in the electric municipal industry, OMPA and member cities events and activities, updates on policies and regulations at the state and federal level and more. OMPA sends this newsletter to city staff and elected and appointed officials.

Please view our January-February 2023 edition below.

Marlow City Manager Jason McPherson has been elected to serve on the Board of Directors for the American Public Power Association (APPA).

The APPA is a national organization, representing the more than 2,000 Public Power utilities in the U.S. They advocate and advise on electricity policy, technology, trends, training, and operations.

McPherson is the first representative of an Oklahoma Municipal Power Authority member to serve on the APPA Board. Those elected to the Board of Directors are eligible to serve three-year terms.

McPherson is also on the Board of Directors for OMPA, having been seated in 2016. He has been active in the industry since, presenting at conferences and on webinars. He also received the APPA’s 7 Hats Award, which goes to those from smaller utilities who go above and beyond in their duties.

A native son of Marlow, McPherson worked in banking in his hometown, as well as the news editor at The Marlow Review, before joining the city in 2012. He spent his first year as the Community Services Coordinator, before taking over the City Administrator position in 2013. He was also named the Marlow Chamber of Commerce Outstanding Citizen of the year in 2013.

McPherson was instrumental in securing funding for the redesign of Marlow’s substation and he was a driving factor in the city installing a second backup transformer to their new substation. He was also responsible for the completion of the city’s automatic metering infrastructure. He designed Marlow’s CINCH (Caring in Neighborhoods with Cooling and Heating) program, which allows utility rate payers to round up their bill or to donate to a private fund to help those in need pay their City of Marlow utility bills.

More than 49 million customers receive power from the utilities represented by the APPA. The organization was created in 1940 to represent the public policy interest of those customers and their communities, and seeks to provide member services to ensure adequate, reliable electricity at a reasonable price with the proper protection of the environment.

OKLAHOMA CITY -– The Association of Central Oklahoma Governments (ACOG) Zach D. Taylor, Jr. Clean 

Cities Vision Awards honor Central Oklahoma Clean Cities Coalition stakeholders accomplishments in promoting and deploying alternative fuels and advanced vehicle technologies.

This year’s award winners are Western Farmers Electric Cooperative (WFEC) and Oklahoma Municipal Power Authority (OMPA).

Western Farmers, provider of electric service to member cooperatives throughout the state, has been a driver in the development of a statewide charging station network.

“WFEC has led innovative electric vehicle (EV) projects that have made Oklahoma a national leader on electric vehicles. Their strategic approach to accelerating adoption of EVs has helped move Oklahoma into the #2 state (per capita) for fast charging stations,” said Mark W. Sweeney, AICP, ACOG Executive Director.

Similarly, OMPA is being recognized for investments in EV fuel fleet growth. OMPA and their members have added electric vehicles and charging stations across the state, helping drive the clean air benefits of electric vehicles.

“Oklahoma’s cities are uniquely positioned to help businesses and families benefit from EVs. Not only when it comes to fuel savings, but clean air and economic opportunity,” said Eric Pollard, ACOG Central Oklahoma Clean Cities Coordinator.

In addition to the deployment awards, ACOG honored Amy Walton of the Oklahoma Center for Advancement of Science and Technology (OCAST) for her work educating policy makers on the economic development potential of electrification and advanced vehicle technologies.

A Stakeholder of the Year Award was presented to Phil Jones, ADA and Sustainability Coordinator for the City of Edmond. Mr. Jones was integral in the installation of a network of electric vehicle charging stations around Edmond and implementation of bicycle/pedestrian infrastructure projects through an ACOG grant.

This year’s award luncheon marks the 25th Anniversary of the Central Oklahoma Clean Cities Coalition and was sponsored by OG&E and OnCue.

The Association of Central Oklahoma Governments (ACOG) in partnership with the Oklahoma Department of Commerce and the U.S. Department of Energy, established the Coalition in 1996. The Coalition’s primary goal is to advance the use of alternative fuels and fuel savings technology in vehicle fleets across the state.