The construction of the station began in May 1973 and the first unit entered commercial service in April 1979 at a cost of $335 million. The construction of the second unit began in June 1977 and it began its commercial service in January 1982 with an additional expenditure of $287 million. The facility is named after Gerald Gentleman, a Platte Center, Nebraska, native.[2]
Coal supply
Coal comes from Powder River Basin in Wyoming by railroad, using Union Pacific and BNSF Railway lines as well as tracks that were built for this purpose by NPPD. At full capacity, the station burns 800 tons (730,000 kg) of coal per hour.