United Power works tirelessly behind the scenes year after year to bring our members safe and reliable power and the tools they need to monitor and control usage patterns that could save them money. This past year has been no different for the cooperative, which took steps to be among the first to adopt utility scale battery storage and rolled out several exciting programs for members to utilize in their daily lives to understand how some behaviors may impact their bill. 

Working the Lines

The ability to provide power begins with our linemen. As one of the most dangerous jobs in the world, linemen put themselves in harm’s way every day to ensure the steady stream of power to our members. In 2018, the cooperative completed construction on a new state-of-the-art training facility for linemen, comparable in size and scope to some of the state’s largest. Just as you’ve come to expect from United Power, we went above and beyond, including the most innovative ideas from training yards across the country. From a series of low and high poles, linemen are able to practice a variety of situations to be better prepared to safely face anything they might experience in the field.

Bird’s Eye View

For the past few years, United Power has prioritized preventative maintenance of its electrical infrastructure. For this reason, United Power became one of the first electric utilities in Colorado to utilize unmanned aerial vehicles (UAV) to monitor our power lines. While the project began in the mountain territory nearly two years ago, it was rolled out in phases to the plains territory this past year, beginning in Brighton. Drones offer a safer and more time efficient option for diagnosing potential repairs that need to be made on poles and can often offer the information before outages happen. The project, to date, has examined more than 30 miles of power lines, saving countless man-hours and preventing outages.

When it’s Unpreventable

Despite our best efforts, not all outages are preventable. To provide members with more information related to outages impacting them, United Power rolled out an all-new user friendly outage map in early 2018. The new information shows detailed outage information including number of members affected and cause, among other things, without sacrificing safety and security. 
Co-op Continued its Innovative Approach in 2018 

Free Resources for Members

In early 2018, United Power began rolling out a new free online resource, the Power Portal, which allows members to monitor their energy usage in 15-minute increments to decide what behaviors had the heaviest impact and adjust accordingly. With the Power Portal, members can monitor their usage patterns to keep energy demand costs down.

The cooperative also launched Rush Hour Rewards in partnership with Nest Learning Thermostats to replace its former cycled air program. The smart home appliance gives members more control over energy usage when they’re not at home. Enrolling in Rush Hour Rewards with your Nest allows United Power to adjust your thermostat a few degrees on hot summer days to save you energy, and rewards you for it at the end of the summer. 

Leading the Way

United Power members have been quick to adopt solar energy, setting the bar high for other utilities to follow. In November, the cooperative celebrated its 3,000th rooftop solar connection. According to a 2018 report, United Power ranks among the top 50 utilities nationwide in solar energy and second among cooperatives in connected solar. Our commitment to renewable energy leads the way among all 43 cooperatives in Tri-State’s four-state region. 

Also in November, we energized the state’s largest utility-scale battery storage facility at our new west office. The battery system generates 4 MW of electricity and is expected to save the cooperative $1 million in wholesale energy charges. The project, developed in collaboration with ENGIE North America, is enough to power up to 700 homes simultaneously. While not technically being used as a renewable energy source, battery storage represents the next logical step in the progression of renewable energy. 

Commitment to Cooperative Principles

Most of us never go more than a few hours without some form of power, whether that’s work, school or home or the commute in between. When United Power lineman Kelly Snow was given the opportunity to join a group of linemen from Colorado and Oklahoma to build the infrastructure necessary to provide two remote jungle villages with power for the first time, he jumped at it. In September, the group left for Guatemala for three weeks to volunteer for the project through NRECA International. When asked why the trip meant so much to him, Snow responded with the Rural Electric Association’s principle of bringing electricity to rural parts of the country and those who are underserved. 

Throughout 2018, United Power had many opportunities to celebrate continual growth and innovation with members and leaders in the communities we serves. As we look to the future, we’ll continue to set the bar for others to follow. We look forward to all 2019 has to offer, and continuing to provide our members safe and reliable power. 
 

In the late 1980s, United Power overcame a competitive territory war and takeover bid from Public Service Company of Colorado, now Xcel Energy. The rocky battle led the cooperative to reevaluate its service and commit to trimming rates and delivering more reliable power for its members. This is the second in a three part series chronicling the cooperative’s history leading up to its 80th Annual Meeting this April.

Following a member vote in August 1987 to reject Public Service Company of Colorado’s (PSCo) takeover bid of Union Rural Electric Association (Union REA), the Colorado State Legislature urged the two electric utilities to settle its territory dispute in the interest of the public. The dispute had resulted in unnecessary duplication of distribution infrastructure over the years, which was costly to members and customers. 

Three years later in 1990, the two utilities finalized an agreement that would exchange certain territories and establish firm territory boundaries. Union REA would begin serving Brighton, Ft. Lupton, Hudson, Keenesburg and the rural areas of Platte Valley. In return, PSCo would receive territory the new Denver International Airport was to be built on. The transfer closed the corridor separating the two areas the cooperative served along the plains.

With the territory battle behind it, the cooperative began focusing on resolving some glaring problems brought to light during the takeover attempt. Union REA’s Board made a commitment to improve rates and reliability using PSCo’s performance records as a measuring stick. With record performance levels and expectations aimed toward the future, Union REA became United Power, intending to help leave behind the unsophisticated image of the traditional cooperative. 

The name change to United Power symbolized the cooperative’s commitment to its rural heritage while presenting a progressive utility to a new urban member-base. 

By November 1990, United Power had begun serving all the communities acquired in the exchange except for a lone holdout, Brighton, which had voted to deny the service transfer to the cooperative. 

A couple years later, United Power had developed a reputation of reliability and reducing rates. When PSCo approached the Brighton city council again in 1992, United Power members were paying 6 percent less than Brighton residents served by PSCo. 

As the cooperative and PSCo worked to move the transfer forward, United Power made dedicated efforts to educate Brighton residents and answer questions concerning service, reliability and cost of power to bolster its image as a cutting-edge power supplier. United Power assured residents it would track outage and restoration times, guarantee reliability factors as strong or better than PSCo and pledged to freeze rates for two years if the transfer was approved. 

In 1993, United Power finally welcomed Brighton and its residents to the cooperative family.
 

The desktop computer in your office. The living room TV and gaming console in standby or rest mode. Even the cell phone charger you keep plugged in throughout the day. All of these items are responsible for contributing to your “vampire load,” also known as the “phantom load.” Vampire loads come from devices that use electricity even when they appear to be off. These loads are approaching 10 percent of the average household electric use, according to the Environmental Protection Agency. 

Electronics and appliances in standby or rest modes require a little electricity to maintain minimal function of the device so it’s ready to go when you return to using it. The primary culprits are televisions, desktop computers and, particularly, gaming consoles which can use as much electricity as a refrigerator even when not in use thanks to frequent system updates. Chargers are another contributor to the phantom load. A single charger might not be a drain on your bill, but in an increasingly plugged in world, the impact can begin to add up. 

So how can you limit your vampire loads? The obvious solution is to simply unplug devices when not in use and disabling auto-update features that draw power when in rest mode. If you want a limited impact on your daily routine, consider investing in smart power strips. These devices can usually connect to your phone through WiFi or Bluetooth so you can turn them off and on automatically. Many of them even come with surge protection to keep your devices safe during storms or other events that may cause a surge. 

In the digital, connected age, these vampire, or phantom, loads can become a real problem. A little investment and some small changes can end up saving you on your bill. For more energy efficiency information, check out My Energy.

United Power welcomed approximately 2,400 new members on Jan. 17th as the co-op became the sole electric provider to the Town of Frederick. These new members come into the cooperative after a deal was reached last year for United Power to acquire the Town’s municipal electric utility.

After failed negotiations over territorial disputes and pending litigation over the Town’s taking of service rights, an agreement was reached last year between the Town and United Power for United Power to purchase the facilities and acquire the customers of the Town’s municipal electric utility, Frederick Power & Light. Citizens of the Town of Frederick voted to affirm the agreement at a special election last summer.

The addition of these new members pushes United Power’s total services to nearly 90,000 meters, ends all disputes over service rights, and strengthens United Power’s electric delivery system in this rapidly growing region.

“We are excited about bringing the entire Town of Frederick into the United Power membership,” stated John Parker, United Power CEO, after the election was affirmed in June. “We want to express our thanks to the citizens of Frederick for their support in this process, and we will be working hard to make this transition a seamless process for them.”

United Power has been working with the Town to ensure these new members are well informed of the transition details. Members will receive multiple communications from United Power. A series of mailers will be sent to members with important electric account details. In addition, a special welcome page has been posted on the cooperative’s website to ensure these new members have the information they need to take full advantage of the many programs and benefits available to them now that they are cooperative members.

Today, United Power enjoys a seat as one of the most progressive cooperatives across the country. Over the past 80 years, United Power has reached milestones few other cooperatives have, but not without first overcoming a few seasons of turbulence. This is the first in a three part series chronicling the cooperative’s history leading up to its 80th Annual Meeting this April. 

In June 1938, shortly after Franklin D. Roosevelt created the Rural Electric Administration, a group of local farmers in the counties northeast of Denver met to discuss the possibility of forming a cooperative to meet their needs. In October of that year, Union Rural Electric Association was born. The cooperative began construction on lines that would first serve members in late January of 1940. 

Though the outbreak of WWII paused development, growth continued through the 1950s. During that time, Union REA entered a competitive territory battle with the state’s largest public utility, Public Service Company of Colorado (now Xcel Energy), which had begun to see the areas lucrative potential. The battle over service territory would continue throughout the 1980s.

Legislation passed in 1961 finally recognized Union REA, and all other utilities in the state, as full-fledged public utilities with the right to serve certified territories, temporarily halting PSCo’s encroachment on the cooperative’s territory. However, Union REA agreed to allow PSCo to serve some of the fastest growing towns in its territory following a negotiation in 1964. 

In the 1970s, PSCo broke faith with the cooperative as growth exploded in the area during that time. The public utility began aggressively claiming territory beyond what Union REA felt was outlined in the agreement. During that time, Union lost nearly 2000 accounts, and many more were considered “at-risk.” In 1987, the Public Utilities Commission declared the agreement invalid in favor of the cooperative, triggering PSCo to initiate a takeover attempt later that year.

Now more than 10,000 members strong, the cooperative’s healthy growth, combined with the proximity to the Denver metro area, made Union an attractive takeover target. PSCo offered to buy out the cooperative for $62.5 million and compensate members with a $500 cash payout to replace lost capital credits. Union REA leadership felt the offer was disingenuous, and communicated directly with membership until a vote on Saturday, August 22, 1987. Union members ultimately voted against the takeover, placing their faith in the promise of the cooperative future. 
 

In several newsletters in 2018, we’ve discussed the new rate structure and a rate increase of 1.5-2% that goes into effect on January 1, 2019.  It’s important to understand that while the rate change is effective for energy usage beginning on January 1, 2019, members won’t see the changes reflected on their bills until their February statements. 

The new rate structure, which breaks apart the energy and demand components into separate charges, allows us to more fairly charge members for both their energy consumption and their impact on the delivery grid. In the past these two costs were recovered through a blended rate, but with more accurate metering we can now utilize each members’ demand to correctly allocate those costs. 

“From a rate standpoint, we have the right information to correctly charge our members for their impact on the grid and the energy they use,” stated Dean Hubbuck, Director of Power Supply and Rates. “We have put together a rate that should put the power to control electric costs into the hands of our members.”

What is Demand?

Demand is how much capacity you need at any one time to serve the needs of your home or business during the billing period. United Power measures demand in 15-minute intervals, and members will be billed for their single highest 15-minute interval of consumption over the billing period. It is measured in kilowatts (kW) and your highest interval can occur at any time of the day or night. 

How Much Will the Demand Charge Cost Me?

Demand has been reported on billing statements since August of 2018, but without a corresponding dollar amount attached to the line item.  In 2019 members will be charged $1 per kW for the highest 15-minute interval of consumption over the billing period. So, if your demand is 6.97 kW, you would see a charge of $6.97 for this line item.

To offset the demand charge, the 2019 rates also include a corresponding reduction the cost of energy.  Now members can affect their electric bill in two different ways – by staggering use of appliances to reduce demand or by simply using less energy. So, while the rate change increases rates from 1.5-2% overall, members will have more power to control their bill than in the past.

What Affects my Demand?

Major appliances used for heating and cooling, cooking and laundry have the greatest impact on your energy use and your demand. The more appliances you operate at once, the higher your capacity needs are, which will result in a higher demand charge on your bill. Depending on your home, family size and appliances, your demand will vary, and your highest demand season may be different from other members.

How Can I Manage my Demand? 

Staggering the use of major appliances will be the easiest way to manage your electric bill under the new rate structure. When you consistently stagger the use of major appliances so they don’t run at the same time, you can keep your demand low. Make it easier by utilizing technology that helps you offset energy use like timers, delay start settings, mobile apps, and programmable thermostats. In the graph below, the red line represents demand.

Here are some helpful tips to manage your demand:

• Run the dishwasher after you’re done cooking dinner. Even better, use the delay start feature so your dishwasher runs later at night while everyone is in bed.
• Start your clothes washer before you go to bed in the evening, and then run the dryer after everyone has finished cooking breakfast the following morning.
• Grill outside or use small cooking appliances if the air conditioning is running. (Bonus: you won’t overheat your kitchen on a hot day!)
• Set your electric vehicle charger to run after you’ve you turned off other appliances for the day.

The changes to the rates are also complemented by a new Smart Choice Rate that takes the demand concept a step further. This new rate provides two different demand charges, and a much lower energy charge than with any other rate. The higher demand charges and lower energy charges may work well for a member who is willing to shift their demand throughout the day and night, and actively monitor their use. 

How Can I Learn More About My Demand & Energy Usage?

In the past year United Power has rolled out access to the Power Portal, a way for members to look at their energy use in near real time. The portal provides information about when the member is using power in 15-minute increments as early as the previous day.  This is a powerful tool to help members manage their energy use and see how they are impacting the power grid. Used in tandem with the demand rates, the Power Portal will provide the information members need to make good energy choices.  As always, members can call our Energy Management team if they need more information about how they use power, and to learn more about how they can affect their power bills.

To View Demand in the Power Portal:

• Click “My Consumption Data” and then select “Current Month” and “Billing Month.” 
• Turn on the orange Demand line using the controls below the weather data.
• The orange line is your Demand, and the orange diamond is your highest Demand to date, which occurred on December 3rd in this example. 
• Click on that day to view each 15-minute interval to zero in on the exact time your demand was reached.
• From the Daily View, you can hover over the peak demand (orange diamond) and it will give you the interval (14:15 or 2:15 p.m.) and the kW reached (7.064 kW).

You will be billed on your single highest 15-minute interval each month at $1 per kW. In this scenario, the demand charge (to date) would be $1/per kW x 7.064 kW = $7.06. If demand exceeds this amount before the end of the billing cycle, you would be billed at that higher amount.