Board President
Electric Cooperatives Yesterday and Today
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KEC’s Laurie Urban check members in at the district four meeting.
o you remember when we didn’t have electronic clocks, microwaves or flat screen TV’s? Some would say those were the good ole days. Now, we have satellites for our TV’s, internet for business and personal use, sensitive appliances and no more wind-up clocks. Well, technology has also come to your local electric cooperative over the years. We now read meters from the office, we track outages on video moni- tors rather than paper maps, know where our linemen are working in real time due to GPS availability, etc. These innovations have al- lowed Kay Electric Cooperative to reduce expenses while allowing more productive and safe work. Our consumers have the ability to check their usage and pay their bills on-line. The consumer of today can communicate with us on social media, email, texts and through our Smarthub system. All these advancements are part of the 21st Century with our ever changing world. Consumers today expect more consistent electric power and KEC is constantly iden- tifying ways to make system im- provements where needed, adding infrastructure for new loads while maintaining an overall healthy util- ity to serve all consumers. In 2014, KEC experienced solid
revenues and margins. Over the past decade, all classes of custom- ers have increased usage. As a result, we have been able to pay capital credits back to our custom- ers amounting to $4,046,000 over the past several years with an additional $672,000 to be paid in 2015. With solid revenue, KEC’s equity has grown from 31% (pre- ice storm 2002) to over 41% at 2014 year end. KEC’s debt to total assets ratio has decreased nearly 10% during that same time. However, your board and staff are very cognizant of changing econo- mies and diligently watch expenses and significant changes in rev- enue. In the next several years, utilities will experience increases in wholesale rates due to regula- tory requirements. With a national shift from traditional generation of electricity, mainly coal, to more renewables and natural gas, the electric industry will be challenged to provide secure and reliable sources of electric power at the reasonable costs we, as a country, have experienced over the years. Other countries, such as Germany, have experienced serious grow- ing pains with their shift to mainly renewable power. The Environ- mental Protection Agency (EPA) will continue to flex their muscle in requiring all electric generation to be eco-friendly. Everyone wants clean water, land and air. However, a prudent approach must be taken to ensure that reliability is kept a high priority and price is not out of reach, something that doesn’t always factor in to the laws man- dated by EPA which require strict adherence.
One way of saving costs is to control our usage during the most expensive time of electric genera- tion. For most Oklahomans, this
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is in the heat of the summer when peak days are established. If we are all diligent about conserving electricity during the peak days of summer, everyone will save. New technologies will allow consum- ers to control their electrical us- age during high cost peak days. Some of these technologies are here today such as programmable thermostats, water heater load controls, etc. However, KEC will continue to offer ways to consum- ers to save for themselves and the cooperative. Some new programs are expected to be available in the next few months, so stay tuned to your cooperative’s communication channels.
There is one sure thing about our world today and that’s change is guaranteed. Yes, we will em- brace the positive changes, deal with the not so good ones, all while holding our past and purpose close to our hearts. We, at KEC, will continue to explore new tech- nologies and ways in which it will enhance our lives and hold costs down.
I hope to see you on Friday, April 10th at the Blackwell High School Auditorium.
Max Hohmann
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