October 10, 2023
SUMMARY
Good afternoon. I hope this report finds you and your family staying healthy. It has been another very busy past month, which for me included several business meetings and a little fishing. The next few weeks will remain extremely busy as we continue with area meetings, Strategic Planning, and more out-of-town meetings.
The following are brief updates on HEA’s current business activities and strategic goals that have taken place over the last month. As always, a more detailed report will be given on the day of the meeting.
SAFETY
We had another good month for safety. HEA has worked 141 days without experiencing an Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) recordable incident in August. The full safety report is included in this month’s Board packet.
FINANCIAL OVERVIEW
Total revenue for the month of August was $8.90M. Cost of service was $8.88M and resulted in monthly operating margins of $22k for HEA. Year-to-date operating margins are $1.35M and total margins are $1.63M for a modified debt service coverage ratio of 1.47, compared to 1.42 last year. Equity to assets is holding at 45%, the same as last month, and within the target range.
HEA filed with the Regulatory Commission of Alaska (RCA) for a Cost of Power Adjustment (COPA) rate of 8.046 cents per kWh, effective October 1st. This is a decrease from the current COPA of 8.471 cents per kWh. Pending approval of the Hilcorp Settlement and Release Agreement in October, the COPA rate will change to 8.191 cents per kWh for November and December.
The Regulatory team continues to monitor the Chugach Rate Case. HEA submitted its petition for intervention and is working together with other Railbelt utilities to coordinate efforts in preparation for discovery requests.
RELIABILITY
Generation - Staff continued meetings with Emerson regarding the Steam Turbine Generator (STG) controls replacement project, which has been scheduled for 2024. Alaska Electric & Energy Cooperative (AEEC) received a new draft Alaska Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (APDES) permit for the Nikiski Combined Cycle facility. The new permit was not changed from the existing permit and as a result, comments were sent into Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC). A meeting with the DEC Director has been scheduled for mid-October. Staff also met with West Peak Energy and did a draft review of the Nikiski re-power study. A draft copy of the study will be provided to the HEA Board during our Strategic Planning process.
Distribution - The Homer Meter Techs have been focusing on service orders while crews supported and worked on the Diamond Ridge Transmission substation RTAC (Real-Time Automation Controller) upgrade. The new RTAC replaced the existing aging and antiquated equipment (3354 subnet box). The RTAC devices provide remote supervisory control and data acquisition (SCADA) indications as well as substation alarms and status points to dispatch.
CUSTOMER SERVICE
Engineering Services - New Service Applications
The chart below plots new service applications since 2017. There were 39 new service applications in September which is well below the average of 52 for this month over the last 6 years. The number of applications to date in 2023 continues to lag 15-17% behind the last two years for cumulative applications through this month.
Member Services
Homer Electric is delighted to announce the upcoming annual Community Meetings, a highly anticipated event that takes place every fall. These meetings serve as a valuable platform for us to connect with our members and provide essential updates on our cooperative’s activities, ongoing projects, and our strategic goals for the upcoming year.
This year’s Annual Community Meetings promise to be more informative and engaging than ever before. In addition to our regular updates, we are introducing a new feature that we believe will greatly benefit our members: Expert Panels.
Our expert panels will be available from 5:00 – 6:00 PM and will consist of knowledgeable professionals who specialize in various areas related to our cooperative’s operations. They will be on hand to answer your questions and provide insights in the following key areas - Member Services, Rates & Billing, Net Metering, Operations, Outages, Engineering, and Community Engagement.
Mark your calendars! The annual Community Meetings are scheduled for:
- Monday, October 16 | Nikiski Community Meeting | North Peninsula Recreation Center | 5:00 -7:00 PM
- Tuesday, October 17 | Funny River Community Meeting | Funny River Community Center | 5:00 -7:00 PM
- Wednesday, October 18 | Sterling Community Meeting | Sterling Community Center | 5:00 -7:00 PM
- Thursday, October 19 | Anchor Point Community Meeting | Virl “Pa” Haga VFW Memorial Post 10221 | 5:00 -7:00 PM
Cyber Security & Information Technologies
Social engineering attacks such as the MGM & Caesars Entertainment cyber events are fast becoming the infiltration tool of choice for threat actors. In the case of MGM, they estimate the loss at $100 million, plus it shut down their business worldwide for 7 days. If this type of event would happen here at HEA, we also would shut down for 7 days to recover and restore.
Protect yourself from social engineering attacks by not giving out information to people online or over the phone. If someone is asking for personal information call them back to confirm you are speaking to that person or business. Limit your sharing of personal information on Linked-in, Facebook, or other social media platforms. NEVER give out your password, NEVER give out your username, NEVER give out your SSN# or Driver’s License #, NEVER click on links and give out personal information! Make sure if you give out personal information you have a valid reason for that party to have that information!
BUSINESS & COMMUNITY RELATIONSHIPS
Recent News
On September 25th Governor Dunleavy proclaimed September 25 – 29, 2023 as Alaska Clean Energy Week. Governor Dunleavy and encourages all Alaskans, local governments, corporations, and small businesses to support common sense solutions to address the United States’ evolving economic and energy needs and tap into Alaska’s limitless potential to develop clean, sustainable energy solutions for our future.
BOARD OF DIRECTORS' MEETING APPROVALS | October 10, 2023
Regular HEA Board Meeting
- Regular Meeting Minutes of September 12, 2023
- Board Policy 309, Capital Credits – Annual review completed, and housekeeping revisions approved.
- Board Policy 310, Cooperative Rate Design – Periodic review completed with housekeeping revisions approved.
- Board Policy 703, Employment Records including Personnel Files – Periodic review completed with housekeeping revisions approved.