At its July meeting, the Board of Water, Electric and Communications Trustees received a
second-quarter update on Muscatine Power and Water’s (MPW) 2024-2026 Strategic Plan.
Leadership also reminded customers that extreme heat and humidity can strain the power grid due to increased energy demand.
One key Strategic Plan highlight was the successful completion of one broadband expansion project, which brought fiber access to 240 households along Highway 22 East, from Geneva Hills Road to Skylane Road. The project came in under budget and received a $493,007
reimbursement from the State of Iowa broadband expansion grant. So far, approximately 190
customers have signed up for premium fiber service.
“Access to high-speed internet is now just as essential as electricity and water,” said Erika Cox, director of customer and technology experience. “This project gave more households access to the fastest, most reliable internet connection available, along with options for TV and phone service.”
MPW continues to pursue grant opportunities to expand its communications footprint, with a
focus on serving rural Muscatine-area neighbors. “Reliable internet is critical for all households,” Cox said. “Delivering services with fiber infrastructure is the most future-proof technology; fiber has nearly unlimited capacity and can be scaled up with minimal additional investment.”
Electric and internet services both achieved 99.99% reliability. “These results reflect our
commitment to keeping services dependable,” said General Manager, Gage Huston. “Our
customers rely on us to power and connect their lives, and we take that responsibility seriously.”
The Utility also completed its first redrill effort with Well 27. Producing over 2,000 gallons per
minute, it resulted in cost savings versus drilling a new well of an estimated $200,000. “If we
believe we can do a project successfully in a different way and save money, we’ll do it to benefit our customers,” said Ryan Streck, director of utility service delivery. Huston added, “This is another example of how we leverage staff experience to deliver value. As a municipal utility, we are focused on keeping costs down while maintaining high-quality service.”
The MPW customer satisfaction survey recently closed, with response numbers nearly matching the previous survey. Utility staff are reviewing feedback to identify opportunities for improvement and reaching out to customers with specific needs. “MPW values customer input to help shape and enhance services,” said Huston. “Our customers function as advisors in our continuous improvement journey.”
Staff is reviewing the impact of the Trump administration’s “One Big, Beautiful Bill Act,” which
affects the utility in many ways, including overtime taxation and renewable energy incentives.
The bill shortens the eligibility timeline for renewable energy tax credits and restricts incentives for materials from certain foreign entities. MPW will continue to analyze the bill and provide recommendations to the Trustees as appropriate.
MPW financial results were strong in June driven by higher capacity prices that resulted from
the Midcontinent Independent System Operator capacity auction in April. Mark Roberts, director of finance & administrative services, noted that net capacity revenues (the value for capacity MPW sells versus the capacity MPW purchases to meet customer demand) were $1.1 million favorable for the month and $1.5 million above June 2024. Roberts stated, “The benefits of net demand revenues will continue at this level in July and August, then decline with lower capacity prices for the last nine months of the MISO year.” Roberts also noted MISO energy prices have also been high, which further contributed to strong results in June as the utility generated more electricity to sell into a robust wholesale energy market.
Finally, leadership emphasized the importance of energy conservation during extreme weather. Customers can help reduce grid strain by closing curtains and blinds and raising thermostats by a few degrees. “Small efforts across many households can ease the burden on generation units and help maintain grid stability,” said Huston.
In other business, the Trustees:
- Ratified payment of June 2025 expenditures and transactions totaling $10,496,658.73.
- Set Tuesday, August 26, 2025, at 3:58pm for a public hearing to receive comments on MPW’s Annual MISO Transmission Rate Update – Attachment O.
- Approved the revised/updated 2025 Board Policy Manual.