A newsletter called On the Record mailed in March was intended to address multiple questions the members of Carroll Electric Cooperative Corp. (CECC) had about energy usage and bills from the record-breaking cold covering two weeks in mid-February.
“First, cold temperatures led to much higher usage, and ultimately higher-than-normal bills,” Cory Smith, vice president of corporation relations, wrote in an email response to questions about the newsletter. “The newsletter illustrates how much low temperatures drove the demand for electricity during that time. It was important for member-consumers to also know that Carroll Electric was willing to assist by offering flexible payment terms.”
In response to a 2019-member survey, Carroll Electric began spreading monthly fluctuations in wholesale fuel costs over a 12-month period as opposed to collecting any significant changes in fuel costs (which is what occurred in February) in a single month.
“These efforts, along with similar action taken by Carroll Electric’s wholesale power supplier, will help minimize the overall impact February’s fuel costs will have on consumer bills,” Smith wrote. “Relaying this message was intended to provide some level of comfort to members who were concerned about this specific issue. There is some lag in the accumulation and billing of fuel costs from the regional transmission organization (RTO) wholesale markets to our wholesale provider and from our wholesale provider to the Cooperative. However, we estimate the temporary effect of spreading this out over the next few months will be 5 percent above the normal costs.”
Carroll Electric purchases electricity wholesale and delivers it to end-use consumers.
“As explained by Issue 1 of On the Record, Carroll Electric’s wholesale provider participates in two federal RTO markets,” Smith wrote. “Under the distress of extremely cold temperatures in mid-February, power generation resources in at least three RTO markets could not meet the record high demand for energy across the multi-state regional electric grid. For the first time in its 80-year history, Southwest Power Pool (SPP) required emergency reductions in electric load by utilities across the region.
“Twice, Carroll Electric was, by order of the SPP, scheduled to implement rolling blackouts during the extreme cold. This was an emergency measure taken by SPP to prevent large scale failures across SPP’s 14-member state footprint. Fortunately, both of those orders were rescinded. However, for the Cooperative to be placed in that situation causes real concern.”
Smith said they were extremely thankful conditions improved enough to keep them from having to turn power off when it was needed most.
“Reliability is paramount to the Cooperative’s membership,” he continued. “This is based on survey results fielded over the past decade and the calls we receive when the power does go off. This unique event which led to thousands of web-site visits over just a few days, really reinforced our understanding of how much our members place on the reliable delivery of electricity.”
Smith said their rates will remain well below the national average in the coming months. Still, they take the implications of natural gas prices escalating so quickly when the demand for electricity was at record levels, seriously.
“When reliability and affordability are both being put at risk, this strikes at the very heart of the Cooperative’s mission and what members tell us is important,” he said. “Every type of electricity generation has its advantages and disadvantages that require substantial risk planning. Therefore, it is very important for the electric industry (where possible) to have a balanced generating portfolio from multiple sources. An over-reliance on one source can create potential risk that could ultimately increase prices to consumers and reduce overall reliability.”
Smith said they know many members have strong feelings about certain sources of power generation.
“We want those members to know their opinions matter,” he said. “That is why we created an open forum for members to tell us exactly what they think. We are digesting everyone’s comments including those which are not fully supportive. No doubt, we will benefit from the membership’s feedback.”
Who’s to blame?
The newsletter states that if both “heat storms” and “cold storms” are indeed triggered by man-made carbon dioxide (Co2) emissions, someone needs to tell China, Rob Boaz, president/CEO, CECC, wrote in the newsletter.
Boaz was taken to task for that conclusion in a letter published recently in the Arkansas Democrat Gazette.
“Increasing attacks on Asian-Americans during the Covid-19 pandemic show a spiral in which misinformation fuels prejudice which, in turn, makes it easier to spread misinformation,” said the letter by Bill Rice of Bella Vista. “Sadly, one of our esteemed institutions, Carroll Electric Cooperative, has joined this spiral.
“….to counter arguments that the United States should do more to promote renewable energy, Mr. Boaz brings up China, saying ‘China’s annual Co2 emissions is almost twice that of the United States and continues to grow.’ He adds a graph showing that China’s carbon dioxide output (Co2) is 10.2 billion tons compared with 5.3 billion tons for the U.S.A. In other words, China is a worse offender. We’re off the hook.”
Rice points out that China has a population four times larger than the U.S. and produces less Co2 per person than the U.S. – 6.9 tons versus 16.2 tons for the United States.
“More to the point, China is making faster strides in developing renewable energy than we are,” Rice wrote. “Already 27 percent of their total electric production comes from renewables, versus 18 percent in the United States (Our World in Data). So, instead of making China our scapegoat, we should be looking to them for inspiration.”
Rice said Carroll Electric could not get away with blaming the Chinese were it not for our existing prejudices.
“By misusing data, they not only paint a false picture of renewable energy; they reinforce a prejudice that harms our country and endangers our citizens,” Rice said. “Let us break this spiral of misinformation and prejudice.”