Members Choose Leaders For A New 3-Year Term
Cuivre River members voting at the recent Annual Meeting and by absentee ballot elected four directors to help lead the cooperative for the next three years.
Incumbent directors Troy Galloway of Elsberry and Gary Seigler of the Cottleville area won reelection, and incumbent Ted House of St. Charles County was elected for the first time to a seat he was appointed to fill last year. Newcomer Tammi Kneib of Wright City won election to her first term.
The St. Charles Composite Squadron of the Civil Air Patrol Color Guard opened the official business meeting with the presentation of the flag following the Pledge of Allegiance and National Anthem. The opening ceremony drew attention to the democratic process that permeates cooperative principles.
With the business meeting underway, General Manager/CEO Dan L. Brown addressed nearly 4,000 attendees, up by nearly 1,000 from the previous year, while ballots were being counted. He reported on the record $3.9 million return of Capital Credits (member equity) in August, and Cuivre River's ability to forego the 2011 rate increase anticipated last year.
"I don't think we'll be as fortunate next year," he told the crowd, stating that a 2012 rate increase is likely. Hoping it will be a "single digit" increase, he said the funds will be needed to meet rising wholesale power costs, which make up about 70 percent of Cuivre River's operating costs. An increase is expected, which will help offset the cost of a new power generation unit. The new addition is the high-efficiency 540 megawatt (MW) "Chouteau 2" plant, which is fueled by natural gas. The plant started delivering energy to the co-op power grid this summer.
"Even with an increase, your rates will still be among the lowest in Missouri and the United States," he told members.
The current average Cuivre River residential rate is 8¢ per kilowatt-hour (kwh). The average cost among Missouri electric cooperatives is 9.5¢/kwh; the national average is 11¢/kwh.
Brown also shared a few Cuivre River facts and statistics. He noted that the cooperative is a 320 MW system, meaning it requires that much power generation to meet Cuivre River members' needs. Ninety percent of Cuivre River members are residential energy users; 10 percent are commercial and industrial establishments.
Lee and Irene Warner of Foristell won the top attendance prize of free electricity for one year. Bridget Goins of Lake Sherwood won the top children's prize, tickets for her family to visit Six Flags.
Other prizes, cooperative information and energy displays, a children's corner with a coloring contest, and entertainment by Butch Wax & The Hollywoods rounded out activities at the annual celebration. Each adult in attendance received a four-pack of compact fluorescent light bulbs.
"We received a lot of positive comments about the prizes and the entertainment," says Manager of Member Services Kevin Hurd, who coordinates the overall event each year. "People seemed pretty happy as they left the arena."
The 2012 event is tentatively set for Friday, August 10, at the Family Arena.
Cuivre River Electric Cooperative General Manager/CEO Dan L. Brown (Center) presents the Annual Meeting’s top prize, free electricity for one year, to Lee and Irene Warner of Foristell. They receive a $1,500 bill credit, a sufficient amount to purchase 12 months of electricity based on the residential member’s average energy use. (Photo by Rod Smerkar)