The Nebraska Public Power District Board of Directors makes a rare trip to the Panhandle Wednesday and Thursday, holding its monthly meeting in Scottsbluff instead of the utility’s main office in Columbus. All sessions will be at the Scottsbluff Hampton Inn.

This is the third straight year the NPPD board has met somewhere other than Columbus, holding a session 2 years ago at the Cooper Nuclear Station in Brownville and meeting last year at the Gerald Gentleman Station near Sutherland in 2013.

NPPD spokesman Mark Becker says the meetings away from Columbus are intended to provide more opportunities for the public to attend and offer input.

The board begins its meeting Wednesday morning at 10:00 with a strategic session. Public comments will be taken at 1:00, followed by the Nuclear Committee meeting, where the Board will vote on various action items related to Cooper Nuclear Station.

Once that committee has concluded, the Board will split into two committees, one for Energy Supply and the other for Customer and Support Services. No voting action will be taken during the committee meetings.

Thursday’s session begins at 8:00 a.m. when the Board will vote on various items discussed in the Energy Supply and Customer and Support Services committee meetings. A public comment time has been set for 9:00 a.m.

A full Board agenda is available at http://www.nppd.com/about-us/board-of-directors/board-agenda-reports-minutes/.