These are interesting — and exciting — times in the electricity industry. At United Power, we are fortunate to be at the forefront of these changes, and we welcome the opportunities they bring our members and our communities.

As technology advances and the needs of our members change, it is important that we keep in mind the four guiding principles laid out in Our Cooperative Roadmap: Reliability, Affordability, Flexibility, and Responsibility. The Roadmap’s framework allows us to focus on key objectives as we operate a forward-thinking distribution utility.

United Power is one of the fastest growing utilities of any kind in the nation. Our residential membership continues to expand rapidly. Large commercial and industrial businesses are finding a home in our service territory, such as a recently announced solar manufacturing facility — coming in 2024 — and a planned battery manufacturer in Brighton. Dozens of similar facilities have sprung up in just the last two years. The landscape of our service territory has shifted considerably. 

Meeting the needs of our residential, commercial, and industrial members will require a combination of operational excellence, the deployment of new technologies, and joining a power market. As more members equip their homes and businesses with solar panels and batteries or drive electric vehicles, it will require United Power to think in new ways and adjust how we manage the cooperative. I am proud of the women and men who work diligently every day to make this happen. 

During the next several months, we will select new power suppliers to ensure our members receive lower cost energy from a diverse and carbon-reduced portfolio. Instead of relying on a single power supplier with huge overhead expenses and limited choices, our goal is to have multiple alternatives and increased flexibility. We want to ensure United Power has robust resources and sufficient power supply to meet current and growing demand.

In June, we signed an agreement to work with TEA Solutions, a sister company of The Energy Authority (TEA). TEA Solutions is a not-for-profit marketing organization that provides support for cooperatives like United Power in obtaining electric resources. The organization has decades of experience across the United States, which will be a critical advantage as we make the transition to new power suppliers and energy sources.

We continue to support our oil and gas members, who are trying to meet emissions-reduction requirements. These industries account for 30% of United Power revenue and many of our communities rely on them for jobs and tax revenue. Electrifying oil fields connects them to the cooperative’s distribution system, alleviating on-site emissions production. However, this requires close coordination and planning between these members, United Power, and the State of Colorado. We are committed to working together to facilitate this transition.

Meeting the opportunities presented by our growth and the change in technology requires a different way of thinking, planning, and operating. At United Power, we are continually working to improve our processes and embrace new technologies. By every measure, we have been successful — reliability is at a record high and resiliency is improving across the system. The women and men of United Power, who have support from the Board of Directors, have been doing this for many years. I am honored to work for every one of them.

The electric industry is not standing still, and neither is United Power. We are blessed every day with the opportunity to embrace change in the nation’s most critical infrastructure.

As always, please feel free to reach out to me or anyone else on the executive leadership team with your questions, comments, or concerns.