Tempers Flare Over Rate Increase
Posted on May 19, 2011 in Rates | Comments Off on Tempers Flare Over Rate Increase
Last month, Southern Montana Electric Transmission and Generation Cooperative approved a 4.5% wholesale rate increase for its members. One member, Yellowstone Valley Electric Cooperative, has voiced objections. The Billings Gazette reports.
CFC Study Shows Coops’ Key Financial Ratios Improving in 2010
Posted on May 13, 2011 in Economic Downturn, Rates | Comments Off on CFC Study Shows Coops’ Key Financial Ratios Improving in 2010
In its annual study, the National Rural Utilities Cooperative Finance Corporation (CFC) found that electricity sales increased, consumers continued to reliably pay their bills, and coops’ average times interest earned ratio increased from 2.27 to 2.42. See the CFC press release for more on how these factors strengthened coops’ finances.
Missouri Coop Celebrates New $3 Million Home
Posted on May 2, 2011 in Corporate Governance, Rates | Comments Off on Missouri Coop Celebrates New $3 Million Home
Tri-County Electric Cooperative, Inc. recently moved into a new home. The coop chose to invest in the new building to replace its four former buildings, many of which had fallen into disrepair due to age. The board pursued repairing the older buildings, which ranged in age from 23-93 years, but it found a minimum cost of over $1 million. The board was able to secure interest rates...
North Carolina Mayor Organizing Opposition to ElectriCities’ Rate Hike
Posted on Apr 25, 2011 in Corporate Governance, Rates | Comments Off on North Carolina Mayor Organizing Opposition to ElectriCities’ Rate Hike
Cities in North Carolina are trying to organize opposition against ElectriCities’ rate increase by creating their own coop. New Bern, North Carolina, mayor Lee Bettis met with county officials and residents to explain how the city was trying to take advantage of the planned merger of Progress Energy and Duke Power. Bettis has been working since last January to organize fellow mayors...
Surface Transportation Board Dismisses Part of Complaint Against Union Pacific
Posted on Apr 25, 2011 in Litigation, Rates | Comments Off on Surface Transportation Board Dismisses Part of Complaint Against Union Pacific
The Surface Transportation Board has agreed to dismiss part of Arizona Electric Power Cooperative, Inc.’s (AEPCO) coal rate complaint against Union Pacific Railroad (UP). On March 24, AEPCO notified the board that it had settled a lawsuit with UP and asked the board to dismiss the sub-docket portion of the rate case. The sub-docket concerned a dispute between AEPCO and UP over...
Coops in North Carolina and Virginia Plan Sharp Rate Hikes
Posted on Apr 20, 2011 in Financing, Grid & Infrastructure, Rates | Comments Off on Coops in North Carolina and Virginia Plan Sharp Rate Hikes
North Carolina-based ElectriCities Inc. and Virginia-based Rappahannock Electric Cooperative are both planning rate increases of as much as 30 percent. According to ElectriCities, rates for the 19 cities that buy power from it would increase a cumulative total of 29.2 percent over the next five years if the coop does not restructure its debt. A full debt restructuring would limit rate...
Customer Satisfaction With Energy Utilities Hits Decade High
Posted on Apr 20, 2011 in Corporate Governance, Rates | Comments Off on Customer Satisfaction With Energy Utilities Hits Decade High
According to the American Customer Satisfaction Index (ACSI), customer satisfaction with energy utilities has risen by 0.8 percent to 74.7 on the ACSI’s 0-100 index scale. This year, the ACSI expanded its coverage of energy utilities to include the three major categories of investor-owned, municipal and consumer-owned coops. Coops have much higher scores than investor-owed utilities,...
New Mexico Coop Clashes With Critics Over Records Requests
Posted on Apr 19, 2011 in Corporate Governance, Litigation, Rates | Comments Off on New Mexico Coop Clashes With Critics Over Records Requests
Coop members who have requested records from New Mexico-based Kit Carson Electric Cooperative in preparation for an upcoming rate case say the coop is unfairly refusing to release the requested records. After hundreds of Kit Carson members protested a proposed rate hike, the New Mexico Public Regulation Commission, in January, ordered an investigation into the rate increase. Many of...
Power Supply Cost Recovery Factor Approved for Cloverland Electric Cooperative
Posted on Apr 13, 2011 in Rates | Comments Off on Power Supply Cost Recovery Factor Approved for Cloverland Electric Cooperative
The Michigan Public Service Commission recently approved a settlement agreement authorizing Cloverland Electric Cooperative to implement a power supply cost recovery factor of up to 2.16 mills per kilowatt-hour in its monthly bills to its retail electric customers. See the Michigan Department of Energy, Labor, Economic Growth for additional details.
Vermont Bill May Make “Net-Metering” More Attractive
Posted on Apr 13, 2011 in Rates, Renewable Energy | Comments Off on Vermont Bill May Make “Net-Metering” More Attractive
A bill has just passed the Vermont House that would provide greater financial incentives for net-metering. Vermont’s net-metering program lets residents and businesses generate their own power using grid-connected systems and, when necessary, tap into electricity from the local utility, Vermont Electric Cooperative. When excess power is produced, residents can send it back into the...
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