Community
2022 Community highlights
- $556,000 donated: The Otter Tail Power Company Foundation gave more than $556,000 to organizations that strengthen our rural areas and provide support in times of need.
- 2,600 hours volunteered: Our employees are active in our communities, volunteering more than 2,600 total hours to their favorite nonprofits in 2022.
- 2 safety awards received: The Minnesota Safety Council awarded us the 2021 Meritorious Achievement in Occupational Safety and the Lignite Energy Council awarded Coyote Station the 2021 Distinguished Safety Award.
Lending a helping hand
Habitat for Humanity has a clear vision: A world where everyone has a decent place to live. We’ve helped fulfill that vision by providing heat pumps, LED light fixtures, and LED bulbs to make homes more energy efficient and reduce ongoing energy costs. In 2022 we also sponsored the Habitat 500, a fundraising event aimed at increasing awareness about the need for decent and affordable housing.
Our teams have volunteered their time and skills, working side-by-side with Habitat for Humanity leaders on sheeting, preparing for concrete foundations, tacking up house wrap, and more.
Partnering for positive impact
For more than 100 years we’ve partnered with our employees and customers to better the areas where we all live and work. Community giving is carried out, in part, by the Otter Tail Power Company Foundation. In 2022 the Foundation donated more than $556,000 to organizations that strengthen our rural areas and provide support in times of need. Our Foundation’s donations have helped local organizations fund medical and safety supplies, offer student scholarships, provide meals and resources, promote participation in robotics programs, and encourage play at facilities that are accessible by all.
We also empower employees to make an impact on a nonprofit organization of their choice. Through The Power of Two program, any employee that volunteers 24 hours of their time to a qualifying organization is eligible for a $250 donation to that organization from the Foundation. Our employees volunteered more than 2,600 hours in 2022.
Safety at work, at home, always
We provide safe working conditions, extensive safety training, and appropriate protective equipment to make sure our employees return home safe and healthy after every day of work.
In May the Minnesota Safety Council awarded Otter Tail Power (along with 68 other employers) the 2021 Meritorious Achievement in Occupational Safety. We earned this award by achieving incidence rates better than the industry average for at least three years and a score between 50 and 74 on a 100-point safety program evaluation scale.
While the Meritorious Achievement award is from the Minnesota Safety Council, the award criteria is based on our companywide performance in all three states we serve. Every employee played a part in us receiving this recognition.
Greg Overland, Safety Services Manager
In September the Lignite Energy Council awarded Coyote Station the 2021 Distinguished Safety Award. This award is for any lignite mine or lignite-fired power plant in North Dakota that maintains an accident incident rate lower than the national average. Coyote Station was the only power plant to win the award.