Power of Community - Pedernales Electric Cooperative

Comments  (12)

• Houston, has 7or8 choices for power,being the only game in town allows pec to hammer the public on the cost of electricity!
  • BY: robert
  • 21 Jan

• PEC has not opted in to the deregulated electric market at this time, but ensuring that rates remain competitive is important to us, and we understand how important it is to PEC members. We will remain mindful about cost-containment, looking for ways to reduce expenses without sacrificing the quality of our member service or electric service and passing those savings on to the membership. To see how our rates compare with those of deregulated utilities throughout Texas, please visit the Public Utility Commission of Texas website.

  — PEC

  • BY: PEC
  • 23 Jan

• I rest my case,if there is no competition the price will stay high!
  • BY: robert
  • 30 Jan

• Do the ratepayers n Houston have to pay a wires fee or delivery fee as well on top of the rates you can find on line?  I believe they have to pay Centerpoint for that service.  So when you compare, you have to include that amount as well. 
  
  Anyway, this is about how you set the thermostat.  I set it to 70 for a few hours in the morning then drop it the rest of the day.
  • BY: David
  • 30 Jan

• Thanks for your comment, David. We commend you on your conservation efforts.

  You're correct in pointing out that if PEC was deregulated, we would still own our distribution grid. Additional information about deregulation is available in our September 13 CO-OP Policy Blog.

  — PEC

  • BY: PEC
  • 31 Jan

• You guys should do a conservation blog about the new generation of heat pump hybrid electric water heaters.  I am a relatively new PEC customer who moved into a home in PEC territory using two standard tank electric water heaters and was shocked (pardon the pun) at the energy consumption of those things (like 4,000 kWH / year, each).  After researching alternatives (including switching to propane tankless heaters), I settled on two new heat pump hybrid water heaters (in my case branded GE) purchased from a local big box home improvement retailer.  Since one is installed in the garage and the other in an attic, their delivery of byproduct cool, dry air back into the spaces is a real bonus here in Texas, and they are definitely living up to their promise of cutting energy consumption by 50% or more, running in full 'eco' mode.  The energystar.gov web site now lists some 36 models of these from 18 manufacturers, so they aren't experimental anymore either, and prices are dropping (especially if you watch for the occasional sale) so payback comes quicker now too.
  • BY: GR
  • 03 Feb

• Thank you for the suggestion, GR. Conservation representative Chris Denison said he's familiar with hybrid heat pump water heaters and will research their energy efficiency. We'll post his findings as soon as possible.

  — PEC

  • BY: PEC
  • 03 Feb

• I would like to know why does PEC charge customers a SERVICE AVAILABILITY CHARGE, this charge is almost the same cost as my electric use.  I feel this should be a one time charge!!!! The service availablity & delivery charge are more than my the cost of my electircal use...
  
  Vonnie
  • BY: vonnie
  • 08 Feb

• I would also like to know why we are getting charged a delivery charge on top of our electricity consumption? I am also aware that it seems everyones bill in january is at least double what it is any other time of year. I hope you are enjoying those bonuses. Also I would like to know why we are not yet seeing credits on our bills for the credits we are owed?
  • BY: todd
  • 09 Feb

• Great questions. PEC’s service availability charge reflects the cost of having electric service available at the flip of a switch. Whether you turn on your lights or not, a lot of expense goes into maintaining and operating the distribution grid so the service at your location is ready when you want to use it. Other monthly costs recouped by the service availability charge include meter reading, billing, outage response systems, and administrative expenses. This charge is standard among various types of utilities.

  During our 2009 rate and cost-of-service study, an independent firm determined that to fully recover these costs, we would have to charge a $40 monthly fee. To promote energy efficiency and to better assign cost to actual electric use, we instead decided on a $22.50 service availability fee coupled with a $0.03212 per kilowatt-hour delivery charge.

  Todd, last year PEC distributed $13.1 million in capital credits, and current members received their portion of the distribution as a bill credit in December. Distributions have been taking place annually since 2007, and we’re committed to paying out as much as possible each year while maintaining the Co-op’s financial stability.

  — PEC

  • BY: PEC
  • 09 Feb

• I would rather pay the $40.00 fee because its costing me over $100.00 a month for your delivery charge. $40.00 dollars sounds better than $180.34 which was my total for last month! That would be $140.00 in my pocket instead of yours. I'm never in favor of people losing their jobs but it seems you could find ways to cut your administration cost instead of passing it on. Let's face it electricity is way to expensive here in this part of the country. I can't wait till Solar and wind become more affordable to install.
  • BY: Todd
  • 10 Feb

• Todd, we apologize for any misunderstanding regarding our previous response. The $40 charge would have been included on each bill regardless of the amount of energy used, and the Total Power Cost charges would have been billed in addition to that amount.

  To more fairly associate service availability charges with electric use, we instead opted for a $22.50 fee coupled with the $0.03212 per kilowatt-hour Delivery Charge. This structure also provides an incentive for conserving energy; members who use less than about 1,300 kwh during a service period are billed less than $40 in delivery charges, while those using more than 1,300 kwh pay more than $40. Those charges recoup PEC’s increased cost to serve that location.

  The Co-op has been working hard over the past few years to reduce operational expenses, and savings of more than several million dollars were realized last year. We continue to look for ways we can provide the most possible value to the members we serve.

  — PEC

  • BY: PEC
  • 14 Feb