LINCOLN — Nebraska Attorney General Mike Hilgers is ending his lawsuit against the Omaha Public Power District, for now, after the public utility board delayed plans to modify power production in North Omaha until 2028.

Hilgers, on Tuesday, announced his office would voluntarily dismiss his lawsuit filed Oct. 9, but that it could be brought again “if circumstances change.” The OPPD board on Dec. 18 voted 6-2 for a resolution that puts off plans to “modernize” North Omaha Station and end coal production at the site until at least 2028, rather than 2026. OPPD Directors Eric Williams and Sara Howard opposed the resolution.

OPPD’s vote introduced new requirements before the North Omaha transition could occur. In a separate vote, OPPD approved average rate increases of 6.3%, effective Jan. 1. OPPD Director Amanda Bogner and Howard opposed the increase.

“We brought this lawsuit because public power providers should not achieve their self-imposed environmental goals by raising prices for Nebraska consumers,” Hilgers said in a Tuesday statement. “After last week’s vote, OPPD’s plans for the North Omaha Station now align with their twin mandates of affordability and reliability in delivering electricity to Nebraskans.”

Craig Moody, an OPPD member who voted in favor of the Dec. 18 resolution, said in a recent social media post that whether board directors supported or opposed the resolution would have still delayed changes at North Omaha Station until the end of 2028, if not later.

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