Since the “day the lights came on” Tri-County Electric Cooperative has been growing. It has grown in the number of members, meters and kilowatt-hours consumed. That growth has been good, and it's one reason your electric cooperative has prospered for more than 80 years.

The growth we are seeing today is different than the steady rise in electricity use over the years. We are seeing more and more energy use during peak times, such as in the morning when most people get ready for work and school, and in the early evening when they return home and start preparing supper. This increase in energy use at those critical times is something we are watching closely. Why? Because an electric grid has to be designed so that if every single electrical device on the system is turned on at the same time, there is enough power available to operate the equipment.

The challenge is determining what is out there, what is coming and how to plan in order to make the supply of electricity equal the demand for it. That's A BIG challenge. Experts aren't certain what is driving these new peaks, but we are seeing them increase every winter, and again in the hottest days of summer. One obvious reason is that just about everything you buy these days comes with a cord attached, whether it is powered directly from your wall outlets or it runs off a battery that has to be recharged. We do know that Americans bought a lot of stuff during the Covid-19 pandemic, and continue to plug it in.

We've also seen a dramatic increase in swapping older appliances for ones that are more energy efficient. That's a good thing for members because it helps reduce electric bills. That being said, there's a chance we already have replaced most of the old energy hogs and new appliances added today may just be more load on the system overall. Think of refrigerator as an example. It use to be 10 years ago you could get an energy efficient refrigerator and it would make ice and keep your items cool/frozen. Now a refrigerator can make ice, keep items cool/frozen, connect to the internet, monitor different cooling systems and multiple ice makers. Because energy efficient products are offering "more bells and whistles" it uses more power.

That could be the case with LED lights, too. Electric cooperatives have been encouraging members to replace their old. incandescent and CFL bulbs with LEDS and they're taking our advice. This new technology is finding its way into homes more and more but that same lightbulb can now offer "more bells and whistles" like connecting to the internet, changing colors, dimming features and more. All of the "new" is more on the power grid.

Fortunately, there are some extremely smart people studying this situation, and plans are in place to add more electric generation designed to cover those hours of peak use on our system. Their goal is to continue the reliability you have come to count on -- because what good is it to have electrically powered technology if it doesn't work when you need it?

These new peaks can start quickly and can be shut down just as fast as when they are no longer needed. Unfortunately, intermittent sources of electricity such as wind and solar cannot be counted on when they are needed. Reliability is key and it's not always sunny and the wind isn't always blowing. Again, reliability is important but it comes with a cost. We expect new generation will put pressure on rates. Our mission is to keep this as low as possible however we want to be transparent with our members. New generation is needed and it will cost money. Solar and wind aren't always reliable and if we are going to increase our electric load we need to build and invest in reliable energy production. 

How can you help in this process? For now you can help delay the use of major appliances during peak times. Use your delay or schedule settings. You can set them so they come on after you are in bed or when you're at work or home for lunch. 

As we plan for the future, rest assured that these two things will drive our planning process; reliability and affordability because co-ops care!