Electric Co-ops Work Together to Keep Energy Affordable, Reliable for Members

The low-density rural areas served by electric co-ops often stand to gain the most from advances in automation and efficiency.

By Justin LaBerge

The Kit Carson Windpower Project, located northwest of Burlington, generates enough electricity to power up to 14,000 homes.

The Kit Carson Windpower Project, located northwest of Burlington, generates enough electricity to power up to 14,000 homes.

Like shelter, food and clothing, electricity is a staple of our lives. When the price of energy goes up, you have less money to spend on other things. For some families, that might mean a shorter vacation or one less meal at a restaurant. But for many families, increases in energy costs mean hard choices, such as whether to pay the light bill or the grocery bill.

Colorado’s electric cooperatives understand that reality and work hard every day to keep rates as low as possible while still maintaining a safe and reliable system.

A detailed explanation of all the ways cooperatives work to keep energy affordable could fill every page of this magazine, but here are a few you should know about.

Not-for-profit model

The most powerful weapon in your cooperative’s fight to keep energy affordable is the not-for-profit business model. Unlike investor-owned utilities, electric cooperatives aren’t in business to make profits for shareholders.

Electric cooperatives exist to provide safe, reliable and affordable energy to members in the communities they serve. Any surplus revenue is reinvested in the cooperative, used to pay down debt or returned to members over time through capital credits.

Energy advocacy

Regulation is a necessary and important part of a modern world, but well-intentioned regulations often have costly and unintended consequences.

Your electric cooperative is a member of the Colorado Rural Electric Association and the National Rural Electric Cooperative Association, which act as voices for you and your fellow co-op members at the Colorado Capitol and in Washington, D.C.

These associations work hard to ensure lawmakers and regulators understand the impact changes they propose could have on the cost and reliability of your electric service.

Technology and innovation

The energy industry is in the midst of a period of significant change, and many of these advances have the potential to improve the affordability, reliability and efficiency of our nation’s electric system. Your local electric cooperative is actively involved in the development of new technologies and monitors the advances of other researchers through its national association.

The Erie Landfill gas plant turns “methane to megawatts” by capturing methane from the landfill’s waste and generating approximately 3.2 MW of capacity.

The Erie Landfill gas plant turns “methane to megawatts” by capturing methane from the landfill’s waste and generating approximately 3.2 MW of capacity.

It might surprise you to know that America’s electric cooperatives are often leaders in the implementation of new energy technologies. The low-density rural areas served by electric co-ops often stand to gain the most from advances in automation and efficiency.

Technologies, such as automated meter reading and remote system control, allow electric cooperatives to save money while improving service.

In rural areas where people and infrastructure are more spread out, crews often travel great distances to reach trouble spots and make repairs. In addition to travel time, this results in higher costs for fuel and labor.

Through advanced grid technology, many routine system issues can be addressed remotely. When a crew must be dispatched to make repairs, advanced grid technology can help diagnose the problem remotely so the co-op can send the right personnel, equipment and parts to make the repair quickly.

Electric cooperatives are also leaders in the development of renewable energy projects. In fact, three of the top four solar utilities in America are electric cooperatives.

Colorado’s electric cooperatives continually prove to be leaders in renewable energy projects. For example, Delta-Montrose Electric Association, based in Montrose, brought President William Howard Taft’s 100-year-old vision to life when the co-op’s South Canal Hydroelectric Project broke ground in 2012. It’s estimated that this renewable energy project could generate around 7 megawatts of capacity each year while eliminating more than 275,000 tons of carbon dioxide from entering the atmosphere over a 30-year period.

Tri-State Generation and Transmission, the wholesale electric power supplier for 18 of Colorado’s 22 co-ops, entered into several wind generation agreements over the years, starting with the Kit Carson Windpower Project, located northwest of Burlington. This facility generates enough electricity to power up to 14,000 homes. Tri-State’s Colorado Highlands Wind Project, located near Sterling, began electricity generation in 2012. The Carousel Wind Farm is located in K.C. Electric Association’s territory and is slated to come on line in 2016. The Twin Buttes II project south of Lamar in Southeast Colorado Power Association’s territory is scheduled to begin supplying Tri-State with electricity in 2017.

In 2011, United Power, headquartered in Brighton, was the first Colorado electric co-op to add landfill gas generation to its renewable portfolio. The Erie Landfill gas plant turns “methane to megawatts” by capturing methane from the landfill’s waste, producing approximately 3.2 MW of capacity. Other Colorado co-ops are turning waste heat to electricity, capturing coal mine methane and adding solar gardens and small hydropower projects.

As energy technology continues to advance, you can be confident that your local electric cooperative is keeping a close eye on these changes and seeking ways incorporate more renewable energy into its resources while keeping electricity affordable and reliable.

Conservation and efficiency

Finally, it’s important to remember that the cheapest kilowatt is the one you never use. Though there are many factors that impact the price of electricity that are beyond your control, you do have control over the energy choices you make in your home or business. Check with your local electric cooperative to find out what programs and services it offers to help you improve your efficiency and better understand how the choices you make every day impact your energy consumption. And be sure to ask about any rebates your co-op offers while you’re at it.

As you can see, there’s no shortcut to keeping energy affordable. It takes a lot of people working hard on many different fronts to fight the affordability battle. Though it might not be simple, you can be confident your local electric cooperative is looking out for you.

Justin LaBerge writes on consumer and cooperative affairs for the National Rural Electric Cooperative Association.