IERA - Key Persons
Job Titles:
- General Manager of Idaho Falls Power
Bear Prairie is the General Manager of Idaho Falls Power and Idaho Falls Fiber. Prior to assuming this role in 2018 he was the Assistant General Manager for eight years. Bear has over 20 years of experience in the energy industry. Starting his career at Idaho Power Company in Boise Idaho holding numerous roles in commodity trading and power supply management. After leaving Idaho Power, Bear developed and staffed a west coast-based electric and natural gas trading business for Integrys Energy, a Fortune 100 corporation, which he based in Boise. He has experience in utility executive management, commodity trading, and asset development. Bear serves on numerous boards including Public Power Council, Utah Associated Municipal Power Systems, Idaho Consumer Owned Utilities Association, and Pacific Northwest Utilities Conference Committee. He earned an MBA for Northwest Nazarene University and a BA in Business Administration from The College of Idaho. Bear, a born and raised Idahoan, and his wife have two children who all enjoy skiing, golfing, and fishing along with most other outdoor activities.
Daniel Kunz has more than 35 years of experience in areas of engineering, management, accounting, finance, and operations. Mr. Kunz holds a Master of Business Administration and a Bachelor of Science in Engineering.
Mr. Kunz is the founder, and from 2004 until April 2013 was President, CEO, and Director, of U.S. Geothermal Inc. (HTM: NYSE MKT), a renewable energy company. U.S. Geothermal Inc. developed, owns, and operates three geothermal power plants. The 13 MW Raft River geothermal project in southeast Idaho is the first geothermal power plant in the Pacific Northwest. The 10 MW San Emidio power plant near Reno, Nevada is a new modular water-cooled plant. The 25 MW Neal Hot Springs power plant is a new and innovative technology plant that attracted US Department of Energy support.
Mr. Kunz was Director, President, and COO of Ivanhoe Mines Ltd. (currently Turquoise Hills Resources Ltd) a New York Stock Exchange-listed company involved in international mineral exploration and development. In 1998 Mr. Kunz led Ivanhoe into Mongolia where, in 2001 he was part of the team that discovered Oyu Tolgoi, one of the largest copper-gold deposits in the world. The market capitalization value of Ivanhoe was about $400 million when Mr. Kunz joined the company in 1997 and was about $14 billion when he retired in 2004 to form a renewable energy company.
In 1993 as president, CEO, and director, Mr. Kunz led the IPO of MK Gold Company on the NASDAQ, a gold company he co-founded with worldwide gold mining operations and production of some 200,000 ounces of gold per year from the mines it owned and operated.
Mr. Kunz served as a senior executive of Morrison Knudsen Corp (now URS Corporation URS: NYSE) including Vice President & Controller. During his 17-year tenure with the Morrison Knudsen, Mr. Kunz participated in engineering, construction, and operations activities related to natural resource development projects. He was responsible for the engineering, development, operation, and reclamation of a number of key energy projects throughout the U.S. and around the world.
In 1995 Mr. Kunz was named its Distinguished Alumni from the University of Montana Tech (formerly the Montana College of Mineral Science and Technology). Mr. Kunz was a member of the board of directors of the Boise Chamber of Commerce, the U.S. Mongolia Business Council, The U.S. Kyrgyz Business Council, and the advisory board of the Boise State University accounting department.
He is currently a member of the advisory board for the Engineering Department at the University of Montana Tech and serves on the board of directors of several public companies involved in natural resource development.
Jeff Agenbroad is an Idaho native raised on a farm and ranch south of Nampa. He began his 22 year banking career in 1986 providing the foundation for subsequent entrepreneurial ventures in the financial services, real estate, natural resources, and entertainment industries.
Jeff was elected to the Idaho State Senate in 2016 where he served three terms. While in the Senate he served as the Chairman of the Senate Finance Committee, the co-chairman of the Joint Finance and Appropriations Committee and the vice-chairman of the Senate Commerce Committee. Jeff has been active in his community serving on the boards of the Snake River Stampede, St. Alphonsus Medical Center - Nampa, Your Health Idaho, Nampa Chamber of Commerce, Nampa Kiwanis Club, and the University of Idaho Alumni Association.
Jeff earned a degree in Finance from the University of Idaho and is an honors graduate of the Western Agriculture Credit School and the Pacific Coast Banking School. He lives in Nampa with his wife, Patricia, and are proud parents of two grown children.
Jim Yost, originally from Rupert, Idaho, was elected to the Idaho State Senate at age 24, the youngest Idaho Senator/Legislator ever elected, and served two terms. He owned and operated a dairy distributorship for a number of years in Wendell, Idaho and worked for the Union Pacific Railroad for 10 years. In 1988 he was named Assistant Public Affairs Director for the Idaho Farm Bureau and in 1991 was promoted to Public Affairs Director. In 1995 he worked for a time for the Northwest Power and Planning Council before being appointed by Governor Phil Batt as his Natural Resources Senior Policy Advisor. He was retained in that position by Governors Kempthorne and Risch, and then appointed to the Power and Conservation Council by Governor Otter in 2007, serving in that position until 2023. Mr. Yost graduated from the College of Southern Idaho in 1968 with an Associate of Arts Degree and then from Boise State University in 1971 with a Bachelor of Arts degree in education.
Mike Mooney is an Idaho native calling Pocatello his home. Mooney began his banking career in 1974 as a management trainee for Idaho Bank and Trust and held executive management positions with increasing responsibility throughout his distinguished banking career. Mooney retired from banking in a Regional President position at Bank of the Cascades.
Over the past 42 years, Mooney has been active in leadership roles in the banking industry as well as in the communities he served. "During my career, it has been my honor to represent Idaho on the Salt Lake City Branch of the Federal Reserve Board, The Board of Directors of the Federal Home Loan Bank of Seattle, the Board of the Pacific Coast Banking School, and now on the Idaho Energy Resource Authority Board." Mooney continues to be involved in many not-for-profit organizations with a particular focus on early childhood education in Idaho as well as community health with his Board involvement at St. Luke's and Delta Dental of Idaho.
Mooney is a graduate of Utah State University and later earned an MBA from Idaho State University. Mooney continued his lifelong learning with a degree from the Pacific Coast Banking School.
Mike has been married to Karen for 44 years and is a proud parent of two accomplished daughters, Megan and Katie. You can find Mike most days with his grandson Hank engaged in some 2.5-year-old pursuit including; golf, soccer, excavation, and gymnastics.
Job Titles:
- Corporate Attorney at Stoel Rives LLP