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IDAHO FALLS, Idaho (KIFI) —  Idaho Falls Power (IFP) is celebrating two major milestones and invites the community to join them.

IFP is hosting a grand opening of its brand-new Natural Gas 17.5MW Peaking Plant and celebrating its 125th Anniversary. The new peaking plant is a $36-million investment that adds a 17.5-megawatt on-demand power resource that IFP can run anytime wholesale energy markets exceed the cost of operation.

“That hundred and 125 years, we’ve been building complicated projects for a long time, and that’s a skill set that the community should be proud that we have here,” said Stephen Boorman, Interim General Manager for IFP.

It is designed to dispatch electricity during periods of high demand.

This is typically experienced during the hottest days of summer and coldest nights of winter.

The plant gives IFP the ability to generate electricity locally when expenditures on the open wholesale market would otherwise spike.

One of the core goals behind this new plant is to help protect ratepayers from volatile power-market pricing.

Idaho Falls Power has operated its own hydropower system and is now adding local generation capacity.

Customers pay approximately 7 cents per kilowatt hour, which is 50 percent less than the U.S. average.

By generating more of its own electricity, the utility is better positioned to keep monthly rates stable and predictable.

“Our purpose is to have reliable and affordable rates. And those peak times can be really expensive. When you’re buying that power on the market will be able to generate that a lot more of a cost effective manner for our customers,” said Booman.

This afternoon, Dec. 4th, IFP hosted a ribbon-cutting ceremony and open house to formally launch the new peaking plant.

The new peaking plant is a $36-million investment that adds a 17.5-megawatt on-demand power resource. 

Idaho Falls City Council, acting in its role as the utility’s governing board, approved the construction contract in early 2024.

Engineered Structures, Inc. (ESI), an Idaho-based company, ensured the project remained local in planning and execution.

Our Mayor and council took a political risk to do this. It’s a high-risk project, and we were able to execute on that,” said Boomnan. “It takes great employees. There are a lot of other people, regional partners, contractors; we had a lot of local contractors on this that did a wonderful job. So it takes a village to put one of these together.”

About the Project

The seven Caterpillar (Cat®)-supplied generators are designed to provide electricity during periods of peak demand, keeping costs stable and ensuring consistent, affordable power for Idaho Falls residents.

Currently, Idaho Falls Power operates four dams along the Snake River, supplying roughly one-third of the city’s growing energy needs. With rapid population and commercial expansion since the 1980s, the new plant is a timely and essential investment in local energy independence.

Using clean-burning natural gas, the Peaking Plant will offer lower operating costs and incorporate cutting-edge emissions reduction technology. Thanks to local energy investments, made largely possible by the citizens of this community, Idaho Falls residential customers today pay approximately seven cents per kilowatt hour, half the national average, a legacy the Peaking Plant is designed to protect.

The new Peaking Plant and Clean Energy Research Parkit is located at 2017 E Iona Rd, Idaho Falls, ID 83401

REXBURG, Idaho (KIFI) — Rexburg Police spent Thursday, December 4th, handling the aftermath of an overnight crime spree involving multiple stolen vehicles and subsequent burglaries across the city.

The Rexburg Police Department took to Facebook to issue an urgent warning, confirming that several stolen vehicles were allegedly used in a string of area thefts. A common link between all the vehicle thefts is that most vehicles appear to have been left unlocked, sometimes with the keys still inside. Police emphasized that the town’s reputation for safety may be attracting opportunistic criminals.

“When we give advice to make sure you lock your homes and cars, we often get the response ‘But this is Rexburg, things like that don’t happen here!'” The department wrote. “The problem is that there are criminals who know exactly what our city’s reputation is, and they will travel to our town to find easy victims.”

Police stressed that in fast-moving crime sprees, a simple deterrent is key. “Something as simple as a locked door will usually get them to move on to the next potential victim,” the post stated.

According to the post, a suspect in the thefts has been identified, but they are not yet in custody as of Thursday afternoon. Police shared a surveillance video image of the suspect on Facebook.

Police anticipate there may be more victims who have not yet discovered the theft. The department is urging residents to check their property immediately.

If you notice your vehicle missing, broken into, or items missing, Rexburg PD asks that you report it to them immediately to preserve evidence.

“Please don’t go through everything and drive it around or wait hours to report it; otherwise, there is very little evidence which can be gathered,” the post warned.

Any witnesses, relevant surveillance footage, or additional incidents should be reported as soon as possible. For more information or to contact the Rexburg Police non-emergency line, click HERE.