Our History

1880s Electric power made its debut in the U.S.

1890s Electric power debuts in Lamar. This accomplishment is historically credited to Morton Strain and A. E. Bent.

1920 The City of Lamar created the “Lamar Light and Power Department”, as the result of the purchase of generating facilities owned by Intermountain Light and Power Company, which followed A. E. Bent’s Heat and Light.

1929 Lamar’s electrical generating facilities were expanded and updated with the purchase of a 2 megawatt Brown-Boveri turbine and generator.

1938 An Elliott 2 megawatt turbine and generator was added to Lamar’s electric generating facilities.

1950 A $750,000 expansion of the plant was undertaken, and a second Elliott turbine and generator, this time 5 megawatts, was installed.

1962 The “City of Lamar Utilities Board” was created under our Home Rule City Charter to plan, manage, operate, and maintain, and expand the Light and Power Department.

1972 A 25 megawatt, natural gas fired steam generating plant was built and put into service. The Utilities Board also contracted for natural gas with suppliers in Barrel Springs, a small gas field southeast of Lamar, and built approximately 25 miles of pipeline from Barrel Springs to the plant.

1979 The Arkansas River Power Authority was formed. “ARPA”, a joint action agency is a coalition of seven municipalites: Lamar, Las Animas, LaJunta, Holly, Springfield, Trinidad, and Raton, New Mexico. This group has multiplied the effectiveness of its individual members many times over in ability to negotiate for economical purchased power and to secure new electrical generating facilities.

2004 The Lamar Wind Energy Project was commissioned in February, 2004. This small “wind farm” consists of four 1.5 mega-watt turbines; three owned by the Lamar Utilities Board, and the fourth owned by Arkansas River Power Authority.

2006 The Lamar Repowering Project broke ground in late July 2006. This marked the beginning of construction for a new base load power plant which consists of building a 44 mega-watt Circulating Fluidized Bed Boiler, construction of an 18 mega-watt GE steam turbine, and the repowering of the existing 25 mega-watt steam turbine. This unit is expected to be operational by second quarter 2008.

2007 Construction of the Repowering Project continued with the erection of the boiler, installation of the Unit 8 steam turbine generator, and the construction of the substructures and material handling facilities. the “Lamar Wind Farm” continued to operate reliably, generating over 12,800 MWh (megawatt hours) of energy during the year.

Today LUB serves approximately 5,700 consumer/owners over a 167 square mile area, including Lamar, Wiley, McClave, Bristol, and Hartman in Bent and Prowers Counties, Colorado.