Illinois Municipal Electric Agency is a not-for-profit agency with a proven record of providing low-cost, reliable and sustainable energy to 32 municipal electric systems from all across Illinois.
IMEA offers members predictable, competitive wholesale energy costs that protect customers from market fluctuations. Ultimately, we ensure that our communities can provide affordable, reliable power to their customers.
Under management services contracts, IMEA operates the Illinois Municipal Utilities Association (IMUA) and the Illinois Public Energy Agency (IPEA). Formed in 1948, the IMUA is a statewide trade association that provides a variety of services to 49 municipal members, including advocacy activities before the Illinois General Assembly and other administrative and regulatory bodies both in Illinois and at the federal level, including Congress. IMUA offers an array of training programs and activities for municipal electric, natural gas, telecommunications, water and wastewater treatment utility personnel. IMUA also administers a voluntary mutual aid program designed to assist members with the restoration of energy services and other vital community services in the event of natural disasters, such as storms, floods and tornadoes. IMEA also provides managerial oversight for the day-to-day operations of the Illinois Public Energy Agency (IPEA). The IPEA, which was formed in 2005, is a wholesaler of natural gas to 12 municipal systems and two cooperative natural gas systems across Illinois. The not-for-profit agency procures and arranges for the delivery of wholesale natural gas to members’ city gates. IPEA also provides natural gas hedging opportunities for its members. IPEA has become one of the leading natural gas joint action agencies in the Midwest.
KEVIN GADEN PRESIDENT & CEO
Kevin M. Gaden hasserved as President & CEO of the IMUA, IMEA and IPEA since January 2012. He has been in the electric utility business since 1987 in various operational, powermarketing and executive leadership roles. As President & CEO, he oversees the operations of the Illinois Municipal Electric Agency (IMEA), the Illinois Public Energy Agency (IPEA) and the Illinois Municipal Utilities Association (IMUA). Prior to coming to Illinois, Gaden served as the Director of Wholesale Electric Operations for the Municipal Energy Agency of Nebraska (MEAN), the wholesale electricity supply organization of Nebraska Municipal Power Pool Energy (NMPP). He earned a Bachelor of Science degree in construction management from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln and holds a Master’s degree in community and regional planning from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln. Gaden served on the Board of the American Public Power Association (APPA) from 2013 to 2019 and currently serves on APPA committees and task force groups, including its Climate Change Task Force. He also is a member of the Transmission Access Policy Study (TAPS) Group Board and Executive Committee, and is a member of the Prairie State Generating Campus (PSGC) Management Committee, including serving as Chair in 2016.
