Lower Valley Energy’s board has appointed Bear Prairie as the cooperative’s new chief executive, selecting a seasoned utility leader to guide the co-op through a period of growth and infrastructure investment.

“I can’t think of a better person to take my spot,” said former CEO Jim Webb during a joint radio interview with Prairie. With years in the energy sector—including eight years managing a utility in Idaho Falls and recent work on projects in Utah—Prairie said Lower Valley’s member-focused model and the region drew him to the role.

“One of the things I haven’t ever done in my career is worked for a co-op, and I think the cooperative values and member focus was something that really drew me to the area. It’s an amazing place to live,” he said.

Prairie said his initial priority is to listen to staff and assess the cooperative’s needs. “My initial message is the same thing I told people at Idaho Falls Power: listen, understand the utility, understand the people, listen to their perspective on what they see the challenges are moving forward,” he said. “They have the boots on the ground. They’ve been here the longest time.”

Managing growth and securing power supply are at the top of Prairie’s agenda. “When I look at the growth of customers, members, the energy demand growth, we need to make sure that we’re making the investments to continue to meet those needs reliably,” he said, adding that those investments will include facility upgrades, workforce training, and adoption of modern distribution technologies such as distribution automation.

Prairie also said LVE will explore local generation to meet rising demand. “We’re going to focus on really what we collectively think and working with the board on what Lower Valley needs to do over the next decade,” he said. “We’re looking at doing some of our own generation. We have plans to do that, and I just completed a project in Idaho Falls, 17 megawatts, real similar to what we want to do here.”

Webb and others view Prairie’s combined experience in electric generation and natural-gas purchasing as a major asset. “It’s hard to find somebody that’s got both natural gas and electric experience, and he’s got that,” Webb said. “He’s got the vision to keep us going forward with the power supply.”

Natural gas could play a key role in LVE’s generation strategy. The cooperative sized the recently completed pipeline to Afton with future generation in mind. “When we sized the natural gas pipeline, we made it bigger than what it was needed just to supply natural gas. So that gave us the option that we can generate power. So we built it for that,” Webb said. Officials have discussed a “10, 10, 20” concept—distributed small generation sites across the service area—that Prairie will evaluate and refine.

Prairie described natural gas as a pragmatic bridge resource as the grid evolves. “Right now we’re focusing on natural gas as that gap resource, a flexible natural gas, because it does help you integrate intermittent renewables and really does clean up the power system,” he said. “That transition you’re always going to want to have as your backstop so you can keep the lights on.”

He also signaled continued engagement with longer-term technologies, including nuclear, as projects and economics develop. “We’ll continue to stay engaged in those conversations,” Prairie said. “The nuclear is being focused towards AI data centers because the price point and risk points of these first projects have it more of—we’ll let the large tech companies take that first bite and then look to bring that to consumers.”

Acknowledging the weight of following a long-serving leader, Prairie praised Webb’s record and vowed continuity. “You don’t do something for 30-plus years and not be successful as a CEO. If you’re not a successful CEO, you’re a short-term CEO,” he said of Webb. “Jim’s run a very successful utility. I want to continue that success.”

As he settles in, Prairie emphasized collaboration with the board and staff. “Every time you have a new CEO come in, it’s an opportunity to reassess and ensure that we can keep moving the utility forward,” he said. “There’s a lot of young faces here who are excited and also a little nervous about a new CEO coming in. It’s a unique opportunity and a unique point in time.”

Members can expect Prairie to prioritize reliability, affordable service, and thoughtful investment as Lower Valley Energy navigates growth and future generation options. “We need the right training, the right tools, the right resources to get out there and serve our members,” he said. “I’m excited to get started.”