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Long - Hot - Summer! |
June and July have gone into the record books for record setting high electric usage and bill levels.
In June of 2008, members used more electricity than any month in the history of WCEC. Historically, August is the highest use month during a year and at the time of writing this article; we still do not have those usage numbers.
To compound matters our power cost from our supplier has been higher this year with natural gas going as high as $13 per million BTU’s. (A few years ago we purchased fuel for less than $2 per million.)
Our members have experienced larger than expected electric bills this summer but have been very understanding. In spite of our electric bills, it may be comforting to know that WCEC’s rate for an average 2000 kWh usage came in at 12.5¢/kWh in June. According to the Texas Public Utility website powertochoose.org, most prices for competitive electric service were between 16-20¢/kWh. Nueces Electric Coop who went into competition was at 18.3¢ on July 22 when this article was written. WCEC members who use approximately 2000 kWh/month pay 30-50% less than the market and about 45% less than Nueces Electric Coop members.
During June and July, five retail electric companies defaulted and were not able to deliver power due to the high price and availability of electricity. Their customers were immediately picked up by other retailers but were forced to pay 25-40¢ per kilowatt hour until other arrangements could be made – which takes several days.
I believe that WCEC is fortunate to be a member of STEC with seven other coops. We have been able to generate most of our own electricity and we have combined buying power to purchase more. We are in negotiations to build or purchase interests in more generation units to meet our needs. We are attempting to maintain a reasonable mix of wind, hydro, fossil fuels, and conservation programs but it is a difficult task with unreasonable opposition. There is even opposition to wind generation on environmental grounds by some groups.
We will press on and do everything in our power to satisfy the legitimate demand for energy. We have long been leaders in conservation and we plan to continue to operate in an environmentally acceptable way, but we are fighting high prices forced on us by unreasonable environmental schemes.
To finish this summer, because September can still be a hot month; keep your filter clean, raise your thermostat and keep the window shades down. |
Admin
on August 28 2008 09:19:50
627 Reads ·
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Tips of the day |
| *Take quick showers or baths using less hot water. Hot water heaters contribute to a great deal of a home's energy bill and lowering it's run-time will keep money in your pocket.
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