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Evergy is the largest electric company in the state of Kansas, with more than forty power plants generating sixteen thousand megawatts of electricity throughout Kansas and Missouri. Evergy serves more than 1.7 million residential customers and covers over 28,130 square miles. The publicly traded company has been providing energy to the Midwest dating back 141 years.
Despite its tenured history, Evergy continues to find new ways to serve its customers. In March 2023, the company announced that its Hawthorn plant in Kansas City, Missouri, is now providing ten megawatts of solar energy, thanks to a new twenty-two-thousand-panel solar array.
The solar panels are spread across sixty-seven acres northwest of the plant, and half the energy produced is currently dedicated to customers who have opted in to Evergy’s solar subscription program. Those customers pay a monthly fee to guarantee part of their energy usage comes from solar.
“Using Hawthorn’s existing land and infrastructure provided Evergy the opportunity to construct one of the most cost-effective and the largest solar subscription facilities in Missouri,” said Chuck Caisley, Evergy senior vice president and chief customer officer, in a prepared statement. “Customers will benefit from these savings for years to come through access to economic local renewable generation.”
In early 2023, about half of Evergy’s total power came from carbon-free sources. The recent solar project denotes a continuing push to provide sustainable energy from diverse and environmentally sound sources.
Along with diverse energy, Evergy is helping add more diverse voices in the building space. The company recently announced the creation of Accelerate, a business development program created in partnership with Burns & McDonnell and Ralph G. Moore & Associates. The program, made up of forty small and diverse business partners, is aimed at strengthening supplier-side diversity processes and continuing to build out the capacity of diverse suppliers.
“The Accelerate program will provide a platform for mentorship, business development training, and ultimately the innovation required to deliver safe, strong critical infrastructure projects,” said Tammy Martin, business diversity program director at Burns & McDonnell, in a prepared statement. “Our goal for this program is to position Burns & McDonnell, Evergy, and our partners for new and expanding opportunities and drive economic development in our community.”
Those participating in the program will engage in monthly sessions over a six-month period, learning how to become more competitive in the construction industry, increase the firm’s winning potential for work, and improve overall financial stability. Evergy, as well as Burns & McDonnell, are providing mentors for the duration of the program.
Accelerate is in line with Evergy’s diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) commitments, including CEO David Campbell’s own pledge to join the group CEO Action for Diversity & Inclusion, a CEO-driven business commitment by over 2,400 signatories who want to advance diversity and inclusion in the workplace.
Evergy has also published its supplier diversity strategy, its DEI strategic priorities, and actions taken by its business resource groups. Campbell also signed a pledge to commit at least 10 percent of Evergy’s spend with diverse suppliers.
