By: Brian Evans
Across Southwest Missouri, families and small businesses are seeing their electric bills skyrocket—not because they’re using more power, but because of policy-driven decisions, federal overreach, and a broken utility monopoly system that offers no choice, no competition, and no accountability.
What started as a federal war on coal under the Obama Administration has now evolved into a bloated, greenwashed utility agenda that’s crushing everyday Missourians—all while executives rake in millions and regulators look the other way.
THE ASBURY PLANT: HOW “CLEAN COAL” & LIBERTY’S GREEN AGENDA BURNED SW MISSOURI AND MISSOURIANS STATEWIDE…
The downward spiral began with aggressive environmental regulations launched by the Obama-era EPA. Sold as “safeguards,” these rules forced utilities like Empire District Electric Company—a trusted, locally-focused power provider—to spend hundreds of millions retrofitting the Asbury coal plant with “clean coal” technologies to meet new emission standards. The costs? Passed directly onto ratepayers.
Then, in 2017, Canadian-owned Liberty Utilities—part of Algonquin Power & Utilities Corp.—acquired Empire. Despite the massive investments Missouri ratepayers made into Asbury, Liberty shut the plant down in 2020 and pivoted to unreliable, both local and out-of-state wind farms.
Missouri families are still paying for the now-abandoned upgrades—an insult layered on top of injury.
Liberty cloaked the move in virtue-signaling climate rhetoric, proudly pledging net-zero carbon emissions by 2050. But the result has been higher bills, unreliable service, and a system that punishes consumers for being energy-dependent in Missouri.
THE WIND ENERGY ILLUSION: HIGH COST, LOW OUTPUT, & BROKEN PROMISES…
Wind farms sound great on paper—but in practice, they’re expensive to build, prone to breakdowns, and only produce power when the wind blows. Meanwhile, productive Missouri farmland has been transformed into turbine graveyards, offering a fraction of the output Asbury once did.
When wind fails—during cold snaps or peak summer demand—Liberty imports costly energy from other states, hiking prices even more. The burden? Still on Missouri families.
Liberty isn’t solving a climate crisis. They’re creating an affordability crisis.
RUBBER STAMPED RATE HIKES AND BLOATED EXECUTIVE PAY:
While Missourians sweat over rising electric bills, Liberty executives are living large.
According to public disclosures:
Ian Robertson, former CEO of Algonquin, earned $6.2 million in total compensation.
Arun Banskota, his successor, took home $7.4 million in 2022.
Liberty’s top U.S. brass also pocket multi-million dollar salaries, bonuses, and stock options—all while closing plants, raising rates, and offloading green energy costs onto Missouri families.
Even worse? The Missouri Public Service Commission (PSC)—the state’s supposed watchdog—has become merely a rubber stamp, approving rate hike after rate hike, despite public opposition and worsening financial conditions for consumers.
A BETTER WAY: NEW-MAC ELECTRIC COOPERATIVE PROVES IT…
There’s a better model already in operation right here in Southwest Missouri. New-Mac Electric Cooperative, serving Newton and McDonald counties, is member-owned, community-led, and focused on affordable, reliable energy—not virtue signaling or enriching foreign shareholders.
Lower, stable rates
No climate crusade
No million-dollar executive salaries
Even more telling? New-Mac gives money back to its members through capital credits—allocating excess revenues based on electricity use. That’s not a refund. That’s ownership and fairness. Even former members remain eligible.
While Liberty sends millions to Canada, New-Mac invests in Missouri families.
THE REAL FIX: END UTILITY MONOPOLIES AND GIVE POWER BACK TO THE PEOPLE…
There’s no reason Missourians should be forced to buy electricity from a single, government-protected monopoly. We don’t accept monopolies for phones, internet, or groceries—why should energy be any different?
UTILITY COMPETITION IS WORKING ACROSS AMERICA:
In states like Texas, Illinois, and Pennsylvania, customers can choose their energy provider—leading to lower prices, better service, and more resilience in times of crisis.
A 2020 report from the Retail Energy Supply Association found that competition saved customers billions over time.
Choice breeds innovation. Monopolies breed exploitation.
Missouri Deserves Energy Freedom
Missourians didn’t ask for Asbury to be shut down. They didn’t vote to subsidize Canadian billionaires. They didn’t want to become guinea pigs in a wind-powered social experiment. They just want fair prices, reliable power, and honest leadership.
It’s time to end monopoly utilities, hold companies like Liberty accountable, and restore choice and control to the people. Because power—both electrical and political—belongs in the hands of the citizens, not unelected boards in Ontario.
SOURCES & SUPPORTING DATA:
Liberty’s ESG Claims:
https://libertyutilities.com/environmental-social-governance
Asbury Shutdown Articles: Joplin Globe
Algonquin Executive Pay: Proxy Filings
Energy Competition Data: Retail Energy Supply Association
https://www.newmac.com/
Missouri PSC Rate Cases: https://www.efis.psc.mo.gov/
Brian Evans for Joplin 