Join fellow students and faculty at 3:30 p.m. Tuesday, Dec. 3 for a virtual, CAES-hosted Codebreaker seminar about “The economics of nuclear in evolving power markets.” In this presentation, Idaho Falls Power general manager Bear Prairie will explore where nuclear fits into this emerging energy landscape, both operationally and economically. This event is open to all.
Prairie has served as general manager of the state’s largest municipal utility since 2018. His presentation will focus on the potential role of nuclear energy in the nation’s energy landscape, where traditional base-load power sources are struggling to compete with renewables such as wind and solar. The intermittency of renewables, combined with the recent decline in generation from traditional power sources such as coal-fired plants, has prompted utilities like Idaho Falls Power to re-think the economics and generation profiles of their power-supply resources. Does this create an opportunity for nuclear to increase its share of the nation’s energy portfolio? Prairie will address that question and more during his presentation.
Before becoming general manager, Prairie was Idaho Falls Power’s assistant general manager for eight years, and he boasts more than 20 years of experience in the energy industry. As general manager, Prairie performs a variety of duties, including oversight of an annual budget of +$60 million and the operation of four hydroelectric dams, 450 miles of distribution lines serving more than 29,000 customers, and a fiber optic communication business, Idaho Falls Fiber.
Prairie’s presentation will be streamed live via BlueJeans.