Pandemic Likely to Continue Affecting Electricity Demand
Posted on Aug 7, 2020
According to a recent CoBank report, demand for electricity is not expected to rebound to pre-COVID-19 levels until at least 2022. While the drop in commercial demand has been somewhat offset by residential demand due to stay-at-home orders, there are signs this sector will also weaken. This may result in utilities taking cost-saving measures, such as coal-fired plants retiring at a faster rate.
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Colquitt EMC Partners with Windstream for Fiber Deployment
Posted on Aug 4, 2020
Colquitt EMC has struck a partnership with Windstream Communications, a provider of high-speed broadband internet, to expand the footprint of its fiber broadband service into rural areas of Georgia. Under the agreement, Windstream and Colquitt EMC, which serves seven counties, will share responsibility for expanding Windstream’s fiber optic broadband network over the next several years to reach some of Georgia’s most rural areas. Once the build-out is completed, Colquitt EMC’s members will have access to Windstream’s Kinetic broadband service with internet speeds up to 1...
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Kansas Coop Consolidation Receives Board Approvals
Posted on Aug 3, 2020
The Boards of Trustees for Nemaha-Marshall Electric Cooperative Assn., Inc. in Axtell, Kansas and Doniphan Electric Cooperative Assn., Inc. in Troy, Kansas have approved a joint member vote on a consolidation of the two electric cooperatives to be held in October 2020. Under the proposed consolidation plan, a new legal entity, Northeast Kansas Electric Cooperative, Inc., will be created. The combined cooperatives will serve over 5,000 customers in eight counties.
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COVID-19 Relief Funds to Expand Internet in Mississippi
Posted on Jul 31, 2020
The Mississippi Public Utilities Staff awarded $66 million of federal CARES Act funds to rural electric cooperatives to expand high-speed internet connectivity in the state. Mississippi has long lagged behind the nation in internet coverage and speeds. The grant recipients have agreed to install a combined 2,765 new miles of fiber for internet by the end of the year, and another 1,980 miles by the end of next year.
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Virginia Coop Partners with Utility and Broadband Company to Improve Internet Service to Rural Residents
Posted on Jul 27, 2020
Northern Neck Electric Cooperative is partnering with All Points Broadband and Dominion Energy to bring fiber-optic internet service to rural Virginia residents. As more and more human interactions are taking place virtually due to the coronavirus pandemic, fast internet service is needed now more than ever. If the project is approved by the State Corporation Commission, construction is likely to begin in fall 2021 and be completed within a year.
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NRECA Urges Congress to Include RUS Debt Relief in Upcoming COVID-19 Stimulus Package
Posted on Jul 24, 2020
The National Rural Electric Cooperative Association (NRECA), which represents more than 900 electric cooperatives in the US, is urging Congress to include a provision in the next COVID-19 stimulus package that would allow electric coops to reprice loans from the Rural Utilities Service (RUS) at current low interest rates without penalties. Current RUS loan rules apply hefty prepayment penalties for refinancing debt. The change could save coops more than $10 billion.
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Kansas Cooperatives Helped by PPP
Posted on Jul 20, 2020
Six Kansas electric cooperatives recently applied for and received up to $20 million in loans as part of the federal Paycheck Protection Program (PPP), a $2 trillion economic stimulus package passed by Congress in late March to help small businesses keep their workforces employed during the coronavirus pandemic.
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Oregon Trail Electric Coop Launches 360-Degree Virtual Tours
Posted on Jul 17, 2020
With a lack of tourism hurting local businesses, Oregon Trail Electric Cooperative has launched a series of 360-degree video and virtual reality experiences to attract post-pandemic business investment, new residents, and tourists to eastern Oregon. The immersive experiences, which have been shown to cause the same brain activity in the viewer as if he or she were really in a new place, are expected to get the attention of people who will want to vacation or work remotely from less populated areas of the country.
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Pennsylvania Coop Helps Build Drive-In Movie Theater
Posted on Jul 7, 2020
A Pennsylvania electric coop, Bedford Rural Electric Cooperative, has helped one of its communities build a drive-in movie theater in an effort to salvage a summer tourism season that has been disrupted by COVID-19.
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Arizona Coops Help Fund COVID-19 Tests
Posted on Jul 7, 2020
As Arizona deals with one of the nation’s largest spikes in COVID-19 cases, electric cooperatives, including Sulphur Springs Valley Electric Cooperative, are working with public and private agencies to sponsor free coronavirus tests for people in their service areas.
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NHEC Votes to Help Members Access Internet
Posted on Jul 6, 2020
The board of directors of the New Hampshire Electric Cooperative (NHEC), which serves 84,000 homes and businesses, has voted to pursue providing high-speed internet access for members.
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Mississippi Legislature Passes Bill to Fund Rural Broadband Projects
Posted on Jul 6, 2020
Mississippi lawmakers recently passed a bill that would set aside $75 million for electric cooperatives and other service providers to service broadband internet to underserved areas, many of which are in rural areas of the state.
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New Legislation in Congress Could Save Coops Billions
Posted on Jul 6, 2020
Members of Congress introduced a bipartisan bill Thursday in both the House and Senate that could save electric cooperatives more than $10 billion by allowing them to reprice loans from the Rural Utilities Service at current low interest rates.
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Kentucky Coop to Provide Renewable Energy to Bulleit Bourbon Distillery
Posted on Jul 1, 2020
A new Kentucky distillery is under construction for Bulleit Bourbon, and the facility is expected to be completely carbon neutral. To help meet this goal, the company plans to incorporate a variety of features, including purchasing renewable energy from East Kentucky Power Cooperative.
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