THEN AND NOW

Prior to 1913, Omaha residents received their water and gas services from private water and gas companies. Fed up with high costs, constant ownership changes and poor service, they voted to take control and ownership of their utilities. And on March 3, 1921, the Nebraska Legislature formed the Metropolitan Utilities District. From that day, we vowed to provide our community with safe, reliable and cost-effective services.

Today, we continue to provide quality services at rates lower than area investor-owned utilities and among the lowest in the Midwest. We proudly serve natural gas to more than 239,000 customers, making us the fifth largest public gas utility in the U.S. We also provide safe drinking water to more than 225,000 customers, meaning we provide life-essential services to nearly 600,000 people in the region.

We own and operate three water treatment facilities and an extensive water distribution system capable of supplying over 300 million gallons of water per day to our customers. The tap water we deliver is tested more than 1,000 times per day by our team of chemists and biologists to ensure it meets every federal and state standard outlined by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. We also maintain more than 27,000 hydrants for fire protection.

The natural gas we provide is an economical, safe and environmentally-friendly energy option. Natural gas plays a vital role in local power production as it complements renewable energy sources because of their inherent intermittency. The District owned gas storage facilities and long-term pipeline transportation and storage contracts save our customers approximately $8 million per year in gas supply and pipeline transportation costs. These assets help ensure our customers’ homes stay warm even on the coldest days and contribute to increased reliability and cost savings.

We take natural gas safety very seriously. Our experienced personnel routinely inspect and maintain natural gas mains, and crews are available to respond to emergencies 24/7.