On Nov. 30, the City Commission approved an electric energy contract to Energy Keepers, a Montana company owned by the Salish and Kootenai tribes.

The rates were not released for two weeks due to market competitiveness, according to the city.

City awards electric contract to Energy Keepers

On Tuesday, City Manager Greg Doyon release the initial rate of $29.25 per megawatt-hour for the five-year contract.

According to the city’s energy consultant, Bill Pascoe, that’s a $285,000 annual savings over their current contract with Talen Energy, which was previously PPL. Over the course of the five-year contract, that’s a nearly $1.5 million savings in electric energy costs.

The current contract with Talen runs through Oct. 31, 2018 for $41.20 per megawatt-hour.

According to city data, the current rate with Northwestern Energy is $64.662 per megawatt-hour.

The contract with Energy Keepers is set to begin November 2018 and run through October 2023