Cuming County Public Power District - West Point, Nebraska - ccppd
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Cuming County Public Power District
West Point, Nebraska
402-372-2463 October 2020
A Message from our GM, Chet McWhorter
“The right thing at the When it comes to rates, the
wrong time is the wrong thing.” best I have found as a goal is to
Author Joshua Harris said this, and provide as much stability as possi-
I found it extremely profound. As ble for CCPPD’s customers. Stabil-
of the writing of this article, we are ity means to me that the rates don’t
sitting on the precipice of fall. The yo-yo up and down and that if they
days are still quite warm, but it is at increase it’s a gradual increase
least cooling down at night, and I instead of large increases followed
see activity in the fields as the fruits by small decreases. We try to hold
of the farmer’s labors are nearing the line with small increases, when of Service Study and the estimated
ready for harvest. As they say, tim- necessary. With that in mind, with financial need of the District. Given
ing is everything. Could there be a hard, intentional work by the CCP- the COVID 19 pandemic, the un-
better time of the year to bring up PD Board of Directors and employ- certainty in commodity prices, and
budgeting and rates? Probably, but ees, we have been able to hold rates the effect that all of this has had on
I’m pretty sure it’s not the wrong to a 2.99% total increase over my our customers, we feel it would be
thing to do. tenure (six years). I’d love zero, but irresponsible to add to your bur-
If you read my articles, I’ll take less than 1% per year. dens by raising rates. So, for 2020,
you know that I feel that rates are For 2020, we will not have we will have no rate increase.
the worst thing to talk about in to raise rates. We, along with other I hope you find this to be
the electrical business. Rate is a Power Districts in the state, have good news in uncertain times and
four-letter word after all! In CCP- been working with NPPD’s Board the right thing at the right time.
PD’s world, our power bill is made of Directors on pricing options Speaking of timing, one more
up primarily of demand and energy and we have in place the tools to quote from Willie Nelson, “The
charges. There is also a small per- hold the line for 2020 and we will early bird gets the worm, but the
centage of the total bill that is for work hard to hold the line in 2021 second mouse gets the cheese.”
transmission and ancillary services. as well. Last year, I indicated that Timing really is everything! If you
The transmission aspect of our bill we would be looking at a 1-2% have any questions or comments
has seen the most continual up- per year increase and that would please don’t hesitate to reach out.
ward pressure over the past several begin in 2020 based on our Cost Thanks for reading and have a safe
years, and unfortunately, we don’t harvest!
anticipate this to slow. However,
with demand (the instantaneous
measurement of energy used) and
energy (the continued draw on the
system) being the lion’s share of
our bill, this is the area that we
need to pay the most attention to
and that has the biggest impact on
you.
Cuming County Public Power District ~ 500 S Main St ~ West Point NE 68788 October 2020 ~ Page 1
A Local Family Chooses Solar
Meet Korey and Maria Janata
After a year of research and with how many
watching CCPPD’s solar system options of panels,
output online, Korey and Maria inverters, and rack-
Janata decided it was time to look ing systems there are
at installing a solar system on their with solar. Research-
farm near Howells, Nebraska. ing everything really
They knew Spenner Electric had helped them make
installed some panels and talked to an informed decision
them about what the process would on what they want-
entail. ed. They installed a
Korey and Maria said they solar system for each
installed solar because they are meter on their farm.
always looking for ways to be more Since their farm has
efficient with their time, energy and two meters, two solar
money. With being a young, active systems were in-
and busy family they were stalled. Each system
struggling to find an investment is 25kW which contains about 90 to know that there is a federal tax
opportunity that wouldn’t take time panels per system. credit currently available for
away from their family life and The systems have been up individuals or businesses that
already busy schedule. and running for over a month now invest in solar. The tax credit for
Solar seemed like the right and they see the systems typically 2020 is 26% of your project cost;
investment for their swine & produce from 250kW to 400kW per however, in the following years
trucking business. The monthly day. They use pvwatts.nrel.gov to that credit is expected to decrease.
electric bill was a large expense for calculate the expected kW produc- If your solar system involves an
them so saving even a little would tion. The output of the system is agricultural operation, there is a
help in their overall operation very close to what the website had possibility of receiving a grant.
costs. predicted. There is also a low interest loan
The Janata’s were surprised They also wanted others available through the Nebraska
Department of Environment & En-
ergy office. The state office coops
with many local banks allowing the
local banks the option to offer fixed
rate financing.
Korey and Maria are
excited to see how their solar
panels perform and learn more and
more about their system. They are
happy with the investment they
chose and hope their young family
can enjoy the benefits from it for
many years to come.
If you are looking into
solar, please contact CCPPD at
402-372-2463. We can explain the
process and then you can research
what would be best for you.
www.ccppd.com Page 2 Cuming County Public Power District ~ October 2020
2020 Harvest Safety Tips
We hope for a safe, healthy and happy harvest for all!
Harvest Safety Tips:
1. Use care when operating large machinery near power lines.
Look Up! 2. Inspect the height of equipment to determine clearance.
Look Out! 3. Always keep equipment at least 10 feet away (in all
directions) from power lines.
Be Alert! 4. Remember to lower extensions when moving loads.
5. Use a spotter to maintain safe distances from power lines
and other equipment when doing field work.
6. If a power line is sagging or looks to be dangerously low,
please call CCPPD immediately.
It Could Save
Your Life!
www.ccppd.com Page 3 Cuming County Public Power District ~ October 2020
Power Outages and Blinks
What causes outages & blinks?
Cuming County Public Power District is committed comes into contact with a power line that serves your
to providing reliable, uninterrupted electrical power to home. When this happens, protective equipment that
our customers. But sometimes, storms, car accidents acts like a circuit breaker interrupts the flow of power
and even squirrels can cause power outages. for a split second to reduce the possibility of damage
to the electrical system. This is what causes your lights
Let’s take a look at the most common causes of power to blink. Many times, the problem on the power lines
outages: can be isolated, which limits the number of members
without electricity.
Animals
Animals, especially squirrels, Each year the linemen do tree
can cause power to fail when trimming to help decrease
they come in contact with outages. Trees and large limbs
specific parts of the electrical can come into contact with
system. When a critter contacts power lines during storms and
this equipment, it creates an cause outages.
abnormal current which can disrupt the flow of power.
CCPPD installs guards and barriers to protect Regardless of what causes the power outage or blink,
sensitive equipment, but sometimes critters find a way you can rest assured knowing that we will be working
in. to get your power restored as soon as possible. Our top
priority is to provide you with the safe, reliable elec-
Weather tricity you depend on. CCPPD is here for you, our cus-
Mother Nature can be a tough tomers. Please call the office if you have any questions
opponent. Severe weather like or experience an outage: 402-372-2463.
thunderstorms, tornadoes and
hurricanes and the accumula-
tion of ice and snow can cause Cuming County Public Power District
tree limbs to fall on power 500 South Main Street West Point NE 68788
lines, resulting in an 402-372-2463 or 877-572-2463
outage.
Regular meetings of the CCPPD
Vehicles Board of Directors are normally
Unfortunately, power outages can also held on the second Wednesday C
occur when vehicles or farm equipment of each month at the CCPPD office. C
crashes into a utility pole. This can easi-
ly bring down power lines and Greg Strehle, President P
402-380-3659
damage other electrical equipment. P
Leroy Mostek, Vice President
Safety Tip: Play it safe and be aware of 402-528-3872 D
overhead lines and utility poles Dennis Weiler, Secretary
when you’re driving or moving large 402-372-2713
equipment. B
Ed Kaup, Treasurer
402-372-2966 O
Blinks Danny Kluthe A
Has your power ever blinked on and off for a few sec- 402-693-2833
onds? This is known as a power blink. Brad Petersen
R
A power blink occurs when an animal or vegetation 402-404-0588 D
Cuming County Public Power District ~ 500 S Main St ~ West Point NE 68788 October 2020 ~ Page 4
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