Nevada County Picayune and Gurdon Times Newspaper Archive

Energy is all there is

Making sure those living in rural parts of Arkansas have access to electricity is what the Electric Cooperatives of Arkansas does, according to Kirkley Thomas.

Thomas, director of economic development of the Electric Cooperatives of Arkansas, presented a PowerPoint presentation to members of the Clark County Industrial Council at its regular monthly meeting, November 15.

The cooperatives were formed in the 1930s with the help of the Rural Electric Association (REA), because large electric companies wouldn't serve rural customers.

The people, he said, banded together and obtained federal loans through President Franklin D. Roosevelt's New Deal program.

Once the funds were obtained, the cooperatives installed power lines to rural areas, but still had to buy electricity from the larger companies.

The cooperatives came together in the 1940s and 1950s to build their own plants so they wouldn't have to rely on the larger companies.

A rough political battle ensued, Thomas said, with the end result being the Ozark plant being built.

Now, he said, the cooperatives serve 400,000 customers in the state, with the service territory covering more than 60 percent of Arkansas.

The cooperatives, he continued, have 30 percent of the electricity market, with 90 percent of its costumers being residential.

The cooperatives have three gas/oil fired plants in the state. One is at Ozark, with the others at Camden and Augusta.

At this time, he said, the cooperatives are the only providers in the state building new generators to meet customer needs.

The cooperatives jointly own three low sulphur coal plants at Gentry, White Bluff near Redfield and at Independence near Newark.

Three hydroelectric plants are owned by the cooperatives as well. They are located at Van Buren, Morrilton and Dumas, with the Dumas plant going commercial in 1999.

The interesting thing about the hydroelectric plants, Thomas said, is they are unmanned and are operated remotely. These plants produce electricity equivalent to a million barrels of oil per year.

The cooperatives, he continued, also have a combustion turbine plant at Fulton. This plant was built in 13 months, and provides a diverse source of generation.

The cooperatives use 60 percent coal in its plants, but do buy some power.

In the year 2000, he said, the cooperatives generated $68 million in revenue, with $9 million in salaries.

The cooperatives have a high voltage test center where all equipment used in the field is tested for safety purposes. There is also a safety and loss program for the linemen and other personnel.

Thomas said the idea of restructuring of utilities has been put on hold, with the Arkansas Public Service Commission (PSC) recommending the laws be repealed.

The laws for restructuring utilities were passed by the legislature, but implementation has been delayed until 2005 because of problems other states have had when they deregulated their utilities.

Studies, Thomas said, show there wouldn't be a cost savings for most customers under deregulation, with cost savings being the primary reason for the deregulation in the first place.

"We're not a profit-driven company," he said. "We exist only to serve our members."