The Manager of Tri-County Electric Cooperative is hopeful of avoiding another rate increase. Luke Johnson gave the update at the annual membership meeting of the cooperative on Saturday at its Mt. Vernon headquarters.
“Our hopes are that energy prices will remain stable, but we are living in unstable times in regards to energy. For this reasoning you may have noticed an increase on service availability charge on your bill. This amount on your bill goes on the charges that exist weather you use 2000 kilowatt per hour or just 1.”
Johnson says that prevents members from paying more for fixed costs when their bills go up for additional usage due to weather conditions. He noted the unexpected rate increase that took effect in April was the result of inflationary expenses including a four-percent increase in their power from the Southern Illinois Power Cooperative as a result of the cost of coal increasing from $40 to more than $100 per ton. In addition, the price of transformers and poles jumped dramatically.
Johnson says they are working with their national and state organizations to allow coal fired electric plants to stay online.
“Continue to fight to be able to keep dispatchable resources like coal and gas generators online. We believe in a diversified load, coal, wind, gas, solar, hydro….but currently we don’t have the amount of those resources to keep the lights on if we shut down that generation.”
Johnson reported the co-op is in really good financial shape as well as having good infrastructure.
He reports additional improvements are planned.
“Tri-County staff working with SIPC for a 14-mile distribution and transmission line rebuild next year from Kinmundy sub-station and Patoka sub-station that will better provide reliability to the members served by those two sub-stations. We continue to invest in the distribution system by upgrading the defective poles and wires for system reliability. We have also increased our cyber security efforts to protect your assets.”
Johnson said Ameren Illinois is planning a major new transmission line from SSM Health Good Samaritan Hospital in Mt. Vernon, to Continental Tire, onto Fairfield where it will hook up with Hoosier Electric to increase reliability to both the Ameren and Tri-County systems.
Johnson also commended the staff for working late into the evening on Sunday, July 1st, refusing dinner until being able to restore power to the remaining customers left without power following Friday and Saturday night severe weather. He notes the final tally showed 65 power poles broken by the storm.
Tri-County Electric now has 16,500 members stretched out along 3,410 miles of electric line in Marion, Jefferson and Washington Counties.
Three incumbent board members were re-elected without opposition. They are Sam Phillips in Marion County, Jordan Brink in Washington County, and Donnie Blair in Jefferson County.
