ASPIRE Holds First Regional Listening Tour for Utah Electrification Initiative

Agri-Park director Shaun Kjar shares about the state’s first Agri-Park during the Utah Electrification Team’s site visit.

May 6-7, 2025

With an eye on gaining perspectives from every corner of the state, ASPIRE’s statewide electrification team hit the road to hear from residents in the heart of central Utah on May 6-7 for their first regional listening session.

Leveraging an invitation to attend the R6 Regional Growth Summit — an event bringing together community planners and public policy officials from Juab, Millard, Piute, Sanpete, Sevier, and Wayne counties — to meet with local residents and industry representatives from the R6 area.

“Last year we were able to go to Vernal, tour the Bonanza Power Plant and learn a great deal from management and operators as part of the Utah Electrification Initiative,” said Jennifer Seelig, the director of government and community affairs at ASPIRE, and the director of Utah State University’s Institute of Government and Politics. “This time in Richfield was our first dedicated listening session. Our planning efforts are very focused on seeking out and actively hearing voices that don’t typically get heard, and we are committed to meeting people where they are at. This has been inspiring and educational.”

The sentiment was shared by community representatives including Travis Kyhl, the executive director of the R6 Regional Council and co-chair the Community Development and Engagement Industry Advisory Board team for the Utah Electrification Initiative. “We believe incorporating rural wisdom and experience into any statewide effort only makes Utah stronger,” he said.

That kind of local insight is exactly what ASPIRE is seeking as it works to shape Utah’s electrified transportation future — one that reflects and supports every community’s unique needs.

“As we make recommendations for the state’s electrification plan, we understand that nothing will be ‘one-size-fits-all,’” said Michael Masquelier, the interim director of electrified transportation planning and chief commercial officer at ASPIRE. “Gathering input from all perspectives is a crucial part of developing an electrified transportation system that works for everyone in the state, regardless of where you live, work, or how you get around. Our plan needs to incorporate everything from power generation and distribution to infrastructure planning, and even education and training for the jobs of the future.”

Several of those overlapping needs were key reasons to launch the effort’s listening sessions in R6. From its rural setting, Salina is one of the largest trucking hubs in the state, and the area is home to both ACES Delta Hydrogen center and the Intermountain Power Plant (IPP) — Utah’s highest producing coal plant in operation, scheduled to shift to a natural gas and hydrogen mix this summer.

Over two days, ASPIRE was able to hear from key stakeholder groups in Richfield and many participants from the 250 attendees at Snow College for the R6 Regional Growth Summit, as well as tours of the IPP and the area designated for the state’s first Agri-Park, aimed at filling the gap between rural Utah’s agriculture production and processing to keep more goods in the state.

Those insights — such as the overwhelming consensus on a need for reliable, affordable and widely available power — along with lessons learned from ASPIRE’s pilot deployments at the Electric Vehicle and Roadway research facility in Logan and near the Utah Inland Port, are helping to inform ASPIRE’s recommendations for Utah’s electrification strategy.

As ASPIRE concludes its second year of statewide planning, the team is identifying additional regions of focus beyond the Wasatch Front. Communities interested in hosting future listening sessions or sharing local perspectives are encouraged to contact Jennifer Seelig.

To learn more about Utah’s electrification planning efforts, visit utahelectrification.com, and look for the release of ASPIRE’s annual report on August 1.

Mike Masquelier presents to several county commissions and other leaders at the R6 Growth Summit in Richfield, Utah, on May 6.

Mike Masquelier presenting to several county commissions and other leaders at the R6 Growth Summit in Richfield, Utah, on May 6.

Anca Matcovschi, Fawn Groves, and Kat Web represent ASPIRE's efforts for the Utah Electrification Initiative at a tabling event as a part of the R6 Growth Summit in Richfield, Utah, on May 6, 2025.

Fawn Groves, ASPIRE's Outreach and Education Specialist, tables at the R6 Growth Summit in Richfield, Utah, on May 6, 2025.

Intermountain Power Plant Sign against a blue sky.

View of IPP building against the blue sky.

Group photo of R6 listening tour posing outside the IPP building.

Anca Matcovschi and Jennifer Seelig posing for a selfie as representatives from ASPIRE on the IPP tour.

R6 Listening Tour strides out of the elevator at the IPP tour.

ASPIRE group learning about the infrastructure inside the IPP building as a part of the R6 Listening Tour on May 6.

Looking at the infrastructure inside the IPP building as a part of the R6 Listening Tour on May 6.

Group photo in the elevator at the IPP as a part of their R6 Listening Tour on May 7, 2025.

R6 Listening Tour posing for a group photo inside the IPP.

Sara Shaffer from ASPIRE and Tracy Young, and IAB member from the Utah Transit Authority, walk through the IPP as a part of the R6 Listening Tour on May 7, 2025.

Looking at the power lines below the IPP building as a part of the R6 Listening Tour on May 6.

Members of the R6 Listening Tour discussing the powerlines visible from the roof of the IPP.

Group learns on the roof of the IPP building as a part of the tour.

View of the powerlines from the top of the IPP building.

Sara Shaffer, ASPIRE, and Tracy Young, IAB member representing UTA, pose for a selfie off the roof of the IPP building, overlooking the buildings down below on May 7, 2025.

R6 Listening Tour on the overlook roof of the IPP building.

View of the buildings and infrastructure below the IPP building.

Selfie of Kat Webb and Sara Shaffer, from ASPIRE, on the roof of the IPP building.

Fawn Groves overlooks the infrastructure and buildings below the IPP building.

ASPIRE group listens to explanation at the Agri-Park Site Visit as a part of the R6 listening tour on May 7, 2025.

Travis Kyhl from R6 and Sara Shaffer from ASPIRE at the Agri-Park Site Visit as a part of the R6 Listening Tour on May 7.

Group learning at the Agri-Park Site Visit as a part of the R6 listening tour on May 7, 2025.

Kat Web and Sara Shaffer from ASPIRE and Travis Kyhl representing R6 at the Agri-Park Site Visit on May 7, 2025.

Discussion at the Agri-Park Site Visit as a part of the R6 listening tour on May 7, 2025.

R6 Listening Tour gathers around to learn about the Agri-Park as a part of their site visit.

About ASPIRE & Utah Electrification:

Headquartered at Utah State University, ASPIRE is a National Science Foundation Engineering Research Center. ASPIRE has demonstrated expertise in developing, implementing, and managing a range of electric vehicle (EV) infrastructure projects and fostering strong partnerships across the EV charging ecosystem. The center integrates multidisciplinary expertise across electrical, civil, and mechanical engineering, as well as economics, marketing, and policy. In 2023, ASPIRE was designated the lead institution in building Utah’s Intelligent Electrified Transportation Plan. More information on the center can be found at aspire.usu.edu, and more on Utah’s electrification efforts can be found at utahelectrification.com.

CONTACTS:

Jennifer Seelig
Director of Government & Community Affairs,
ASPIRE ERC,
Director, Institute of Government and Politics
Utah State University
jennifer.seelig@usu.edu
801-558-9368

Michael Masquelier
Interim Director, Electrified Transportation Planning
Chief Commercial Officer
ASPIRE ERC

WRITER:

Kat Webb
Content Director, Marketing & Communications
ASPIRE ERC