Articles Archive

Ayden Rail Site Earns ElectriCities Smart Sites Designation

RALEIGH, N.C. — ElectriCities of North Carolina, Inc., has designated a 374-acre Smart Site in Ayden, North Carolina, a public power community. The designation guarantees that the prime industrial rail-served site has met stringent requirements and is shovel-ready for new development.

“Smart Sites® designation takes the guesswork out of an industrial site, expediting development for new and expanding businesses,” said Carl Rees, ElectriCities Manager of Economic and Community Development. “That’s especially valuable with the shorter lead times that are becoming common for industrial projects.”

Local and state officials join Ayden Mayor Steve Tripp to debut and celebrate Ayden’s new Smart Site on Friday, Dec. 8, 2023.

“During the certification process, the ElectriCities team performs exhaustive due diligence, including environmental reviews, geotechnical reviews, preliminary infrastructure studies, and facility siting studies, readying the site for industrial permitting at local, state, and federal levels,” Rees said.

The stand-alone industrial site in Ayden has the added benefit of having a CSX rail line on-site. Plans are underway to develop a rail-served industrial building pad through funding secured from the North Carolina Railroad Company. The overall site can accommodate more than 2 million square feet of industrial space.

Located on NC-11 South, the new Ayden Smart Site is approximately:

5 miles from Pitt Community College
12 miles from East Carolina University
15 miles from Pitt-Greenville Airport

The Town of Ayden supplies the site’s electricity and water, and Greenville Utilities Commission is the site’s natural gas provider.

ElectriCities created the Smart Sites program in 2014 to help its public power member communities—cities and towns that own and operate their electric systems—prepare shovel-ready sites for economic development. Potential sites must meet specific requirements and undergo an extensive review process by site selection experts. Each site must have municipal electric service, have water and sewer access within 500 feet, and be within 5 miles of an interstate or interstate-quality highway. ElectriCities markets Smart Sites at trade shows and industry events around the world to get the word out about prime development sites in North Carolina public power communities.

“We are so appreciative of the opportunities that the ElectriCities Smart Sites designation has opened up for the Ayden Rail Site,” said Kelly Andrews, Pitt County Economic Development Director. “As this is the only rail site under development in Pitt County, the Smart Sites program has made it possible to submit for the many leads that have come our way requesting a rail-served site.”

Since public power communities own their electric system, they maintain local control and decision making over their operations, providing unbeaten reliability, local jobs, and support for their local economy. That local control also means public power communities have more resources and agility when negotiating with prospective businesses.

“This site will prove to be a great asset for all of Eastern North Carolina,” said Mallory Denham, Economic Development Director for the Town of Ayden.

To learn more about Ayden’s new Smart Site, contact Mallory Denham at 252-481-5831 or ElectriCities at sites@electricities.org.

ElectriCities Smart Sites are located in public power communities across North Carolina. See the complete list of Smart Sites on the ElectriCities website. To learn more about the Smart Sites program or economic development in public power communities in North Carolina, contact Carl Rees at crees@electricities.org or visit http://www.electricities.com/EconDev.

ElectriCities Receives National Award for Value of Public Power Messaging

ElectriCities of North Carolina, Inc., received an Excellence in Public Power Communications Award from the American Public Power Association. APPA recognized ElectriCities with an Award of Excellence in the Print & Digital category for its 2022 Value of Public Power campaign.

The campaign provided educational messaging to regional public power customers and the elected officials who represent them.

“For years, many of our members’ customer surveys revealed that a surprising number of public power customers didn’t know they were served by a public power provider or, sometimes, what public power is,” said Elizabeth Kadick, Vice President of Communications at ElectriCities. “As public power communities continue to face evolving customer expectations, additional competitive pressures, and the potential for adverse legislation and regulation, the need to educate public power customers and their elected officials about the incredible value public power providers bring to their communities has become even more important.”

In one element of the Value of Public Power campaign, ElectriCities served geographically targeted digital ads to North Carolina public power customers on Google and social media sites, including Facebook, Instagram, Nextdoor, and Twitter, now known as X. The campaign also included radio ads, targeted broadcast ads, community sponsorship events, and toolkits made available to ElectriCities members to help them promote public power in their local communities.

“As communicators, we’ve always showcased the value of public power across all communication channels, but this structured, focused, and measured approach is a first for us,” Kadick said. “Given the campaign’s response rate, impact, and importance, it’s one we’re continuing for the foreseeable future, evolving ad placement and messaging as metrics dictate.”

ElectriCities Vice President of Communications, Elizabeth Kadick (right), accepts the 2023 Excellence in Public Power Communications Award from Joe Gehrdes, Director – External Relations with Huntsville Utilities, who served as Vice Chair, Customer Connections Section

ElectriCities is one of 67 public power electric utilities and utility organizations that earned Excellence in Public Power Communications Awards from APPA this year.

The national awards were presented during APPA’s Customer Connections Conference in San Antonio, Texas, and recognize public power organizations demonstrating excellence in communication in three categories: Print & Digital, Web & Social Media, and Video. An outside panel of communications experts from around the country judged this year’s submissions.

“We’re proud to showcase the value of public power and to be recognized on the national level for the important work we do on behalf of our member communities every day,” Kadick said.

In recent years, ElectriCities has received Awards of Excellence for its 2020 Annual Report and for its “How I Got Into Energy” video feature, as well as an Award of Merit for its Outage Communication Resources webpage.

About the American Public Power Association
The American Public Power Association (APPA) is the voice of not-for-profit, community-owned utilities that power 2,000 towns and cities nationwide. APPA represents public power before the federal government to protect the interests of the more than 49 million people that public power utilities serve and the 96,000 people they employ. The association advocates and advises on electricity policy, technology, trends, training, and operations. Learn more at www.publicpower.org.

About ElectriCities of North Carolina

ElectriCities of North Carolina, Inc., is the membership organization that provides power supply and related critical services to over 90 community-owned electric systems in North Carolina, South Carolina, and Virginia—collectively known as public power. ElectriCities manages the power supply for two power agencies in North Carolina and provides technical services to assist members in operating their electric distribution systems. ElectriCities also helps these locally owned and operated public power providers thrive today and in the future by delivering innovative services, including legislative, technical, communications, and economic development expertise.

Visit www.electricities.com to learn more about the benefits of public power and how ElectriCities helps communities keep the lights on through access to safe, reliable, and affordable energy.

2 NC Public Power Communities Receive Downtown Revitalization Grants

Two North Carolina public power communities, Smithfield and Hertford, will receive $10,000 each to help achieve their downtown revitalization goals and spur economic development. That’s thanks to Downtown Revitalization Grants from ElectriCities.

The Town of Smithfield’s grant proceeds will help fund the Downtown Smithfield Development Corporation’s Light Up Downtown Smithfield initiative, which is part of an overall effort aimed at increasing the vibrancy of the downtown, encouraging additional pedestrian activity, and increasing the visibility of Downtown Smithfield businesses.

The Town will use its funding to improve lighting in three downtown areas by connecting parking lots and alleys in the town center, encouraging continued foot traffic for businesses and restaurants.

“About 20 years ago, Smithfield completed an alley improvement project that included lights for pedestrian safety,” said Sarah Edwards, Executive Director of the Downtown Smithfield Development Corporation. “Today, we need to upgrade those older lights in the alley and add more lights to encourage people to enjoy the downtown area in the evening. We‘re also adding lights in other areas to improve the visual appearance of our downtown.”

A portion of Smithfield’s grant funding will support downlighting for an Ava Gardner mural painted by North Carolina artist Jeks. The mural, which features images of the Smithfield native turned Hollywood actress, is on the side of the Ava Gardner Museum that celebrates the star and attracts visitors from around the world. Adding lighting will make the mural more visible—quite literally highlighting one of Smithfield’s unique assets.

“This grant from ElectriCities will provide an immediate impact by increasing lighting that will enhance the appearance of our charming downtown and promote additional pedestrian activity,” Edwards said. “We expect that completing this project will encourage other public and private lighting projects as well. It’s a real win-win for Smithfield.”

The Town of Hertford will use its Downtown Revitalization Grant to help implement its Community and River Front Plan focused on art installations to attract tourism and improve the economic environment.

Like many towns in 2020, Hertford experienced a downturn in business and tourism during the pandemic. Looking ahead, Hertford participated in the North Carolina Department of Commerce’s Community Economic Recovery and Resiliency Initiative to help with recovery and to build resiliency for future potential economic impact.

As a result, the Town rebranded as a “cultivating the arts” community. Hertford’s plan focuses on visual arts, theater, music, dance, and culinary arts designed to attract visitors to the downtown area.

One of the ways Hertford plans to convey its art-focused brand is through murals and sculptures. That’s where the Downtown Revitalization Grant will help.

“One of the sculptures we’re commissioning is intended for people to take photos in front of and will be placed outside the Chamber of Commerce,” said Hertford Town Manager Janice McKenzie Cole. “This will allow us to monitor the sculpture’s success and help us plan our next installations.”

Installing the sculpture is especially timely since the Harbor Towns ferries and dinner boat will soon provide service to Hertford and other communities along the Inner Banks and the Albemarle Sound.

“By having an arts-focused district, we will promote a diverse collection of talents to engage those looking at Hertford as a unique destination,” said Cole.

ElectriCities awards the competitive Downtown Revitalization Grants twice a year—each spring and fall—to its members in the North Carolina Eastern Municipal Power Agency (NCEMPA) and in North Carolina Municipal Power Agency Number 1 (NCMPA1). Grant proceeds must be used for projects that advance the community’s downtown revitalization goals and are approved by the city or town manager or chief executive.

Congratulations to these latest grant recipients! The next cycle for ElectriCities Downtown Revitalization Grants opens in spring 2024.

Keys to Making the Most of Mutual Aid

When we talk about mutual aid, it’s usually about the lineworkers who show up to help their neighbors. We don’t share much about the utility directors who find themselves needing to request the help.

To get that perspective, along with some insight on using the help most effectively, we checked in with Philip Haley. He’s the Division Director of Power & Light for Danville Utilities in Danville, Virginia.

Twice within two weeks this summer, pop-up thunderstorms rolled through Danville, bringing 40-to-45-mph wind gusts, causing extensive damage, and prompting requests for mutual aid.

“With AMI, we know instantly the bulk number of outages we have,” Philip said. “And through SCADA, we know how many of our feeders locked out.”

But to find out what it’s going to take to get power restored, Philip and his team have to know what’s damaged.

“The first thing we do in any storm is assess damage,” he said. “It’s the critical first step.”

So critical that Kenny Roberts, Mutual Aid Coordinator and Supervisor of Safety & Training at ElectriCities, said, “Every hour you spend on damage assessment can save a day of restoration time.”

Gregg Welch, ElectriCities’ Vice President of Member Outreach and Education, added, “Performing a damage assessment helps determine not only whether you need help and how much help you need, but also what type of help and what equipment is required.”

And, Philip said, you can’t rush it. “We take the time to ride all the feeders and go to areas where we have large clusters of outages to determine the extent of the damage.”

When an initial damage assessment reveals they need help, Philip said, “I call Kenny.”

While Kenny reaches out to ElectriCities members to see who’s available, Philip and team continue assessing damage. “At that point, we’re not thinking, ‘Where are we going to get crews to help us?’ We know Kenny and the rest of the public power community have our backs.”

Philip said it doesn’t take long for Kenny to get back to him. Within an hour to an hour and a half, “Kenny can tell us what communities are coming to our aid, who the crew supervisor is going to be, how many people are on the crew, and what equipment they’re bringing.”

The next question from Kenny is, “Is that going to do it, or do you need more?” At that point, the Danville team has a good overview of the system damage so they can make any needed adjustments.

Before mutual aid crews arrive, Philip said, “We isolate the areas those crews will be working on. We want to be sure we can get them in our system working quickly and, most importantly, safely.”

To simplify the restoration process, “We like mutual aid crews to be in a stationary position,” he said. “Once we know we have the mutual aid crews in position, our crews can go further out into the territory and start working those more isolated pockets of outages.”

That gets everyone’s power back on faster.

Philip said thorough damage assessments and proper planning are key to making the most of mutual aid. “The process speeds up the time of restoration considerably.”

But he doesn’t stop there. “We make a big deal about it when crews come in from another community. We let our community know which towns are sending us help,” he said. “We make sure our community knows the power of public power.”

To learn more about ElectriCities’ Emergency Assistance Program and mutual aid, contact Kenny Roberts.

Southport’s Paul Fisher Awarded for a Lifetime of Outstanding Service

Each year at the ElectriCities Annual Conference, we recognize individuals for their outstanding contributions to public power.

At the 2023 conference:

Paul Fisher received the Lifetime Achievement Award.
Ethan Poppe received the Rising Star Award.
Rich Worsinger received the Distinguished Service Award.

The Public Power Lifetime Achievement Award recognizes sustained long-term outstanding leadership, public power service, innovation, and creativity.

2023 Public Power Lifetime Achievement Award winner Paul Fisher (center) with family members

Let’s meet the 2023 Public Power Lifetime Achievement Award recipient, Paul Fisher.

Paul is from the North Carolina public power city of Southport. He’s a shining example of what it means to be an outstanding leader and dedicated public servant.

Before he began serving the public power community, Paul served his country. He was a Full-Bird Colonel in the U.S. Army and served two tours in Vietnam.

Paul has been a committed and tireless advocate for the development and growth of public power for many years. He has served on the North Carolina Eastern Municipal Power Agency (NCEMPA) Board of Commissioners for more than 30 years. He chaired the Board in 2009, and he was on the Board when the $1.25 billion sale of the Agency’s assets to Duke was completed.

He also served on the NCEMPA Rate Committee for 20 years.

Along with his decades of providing insight and leadership on the Board, Paul has a long history of service in Southport, where he was on the Board of Aldermen for 16 years. He has served on various Southport committees and in community organizations, including the Southport Fire Station Committee, the Southport Cemetery Committee, the Southport Lions Club, and Downtown Southport, Inc.

Paul’s decades of service, dedication, and leadership have certainly made an impact on his community. That was clear at a surprise luncheon held to announce that he would receive this award. Southport officials, City staff, and Paul’s family all came to honor him at the event.

Congratulations, Paul! And thank you for your dedicated service.

Next, meet the 2023 Rising Star Award recipient, Ethan Poppe, and the 2023 Distinguished Service Award winner, Rich Worsinger.

NCMPA1 & Central Electric Power Cooperative, Inc. Purchase Power Agreement Frequently Asked Questions

Q. What is the agreement being considered between North Carolina Municipal Power Agency Number 1 and Central Electric Power Cooperative, Inc.?
A. North Carolina Municipal Power Agency Number 1 (NCMPA1) and Central Electric Power Cooperative, Inc. reached a Purchase Power Agreement enabling Central to purchase nuclear capacity and energy associated with a portion of NCMPA1’s ownership interest in the Catawba Nuclear Station.

Q. Who owns the Catawba Nuclear Station? What portion of Catawba Nuclear Station does NCMPA1 own?
A. The Catawba Nuclear Station, which consists of two identical units, is jointly owned by NCMPA1, Duke Energy Carolinas, Piedmont Municipal Power Agency, and the North Carolina Electric Membership Corporation. NCMPA1 owns 75% of Catawba Unit 2.

Q. What is the North Carolina Municipal Power Agency Number 1 (NCMPA1)?
A. NCMPA1 consists of 19 cities and towns in piedmont and western North Carolina and provides wholesale power to its 19 participants. NCMPA1 is governed by a Board of Commissioners (BOC). Each participant appoints a Commissioner and an Alternate Commissioner to the BOC. The BOC monitors operations of the Power Agency, accepts/rejects wholesale rates, approves the annual budget, and elects their representatives to the ElectriCities Board of Directors. The BOC meets quarterly.

Q. What North Carolina communities make up NCMPA1?
A. Albemarle, Bostic, Cherryville, Cornelius, Drexel, Gastonia, Granite Falls, High Point, Huntersville, Landis, Lexington, Lincolnton, Maiden, Monroe, Morganton, Newton, Pineville, Shelby, Statesville.

Q. What percentage of NCMPA1’s Catawba ownership is Central purchasing? What is the total MW?
A. Under the terms of the Purchase Power Agreement, Central will receive 18% of NCMPA1’s project output, totaling 150 MW.

Q. What are the agreement’s benefits to NCMPA1?
A. If completed, the agreement would diversify NCMPA1’s energy resource portfolio and provide wholesale electric rate savings to NCMPA1’s 19 member communities. Our analysis shows 5% savings in wholesale power supply costs over the term of the contract for approximately $254 million in net present value total savings to those communities.

Q. What are the agreement’s benefits to Central?
A. The agreement would provide Central, a not-for-profit generation and transmission cooperative, with additional nuclear capacity to serve South Carolina’s 20 distribution cooperatives.

Q. What conditions need to be met for the agreement to take effect?
A. Completion of the agreement is subject to several conditions including unanimous consent of all 19 of the NCMPA1 participant city and town councils. As of Aug. 30, all 19 participant councils voted unanimously to approve the agreement. The ElectriCities Board of Directors and NCMPA1 Board of Commissioners approved the deal earlier this year.

Q. Are any state or federal regulatory agencies required to sign off on the agreement?
A. No.

Q. When does the agreement take effect?
A. Should all conditions be met, the sale would be effective January 1, 2024.

Q. What is the term of the deal?
A. The term of the deal is the life of the Catawba Nuclear Station which is currently licensed through 2043.

Q. What is ElectriCities of North Carolina, Inc.?
A. ElectriCities of North Carolina, Inc. is the membership organization that provides power supply and related critical services to over 90 community-owned electric systems in North Carolina, South Carolina, and Virginia—collectively known as public power. ElectriCities manages the power supply for two power agencies in North Carolina and provides technical services to assist members in operating their electric distribution systems. ElectriCities also helps these locally owned and operated public power providers thrive today and in the future by delivering innovative services, including legislative, technical, communications, and economic development expertise.

Q. What is Central Electric Power Cooperative, Inc.?
A. Central Electric Power Cooperative, Inc. is a not-for-profit generation and transmission cooperative headquartered in Columbia, South Carolina. Together, Central and its 20 member cooperatives serve more than 1.6 million South Carolinians and cover more than 70% of the state’s land mass. South Carolina’s independent, member-owned electric cooperatives formed Central in 1948 in order to pool their resources to purchase wholesale power more efficiently and effectively. As explained in its mission statement, Central “exists solely for the benefit of its members” and one of Central’s most important jobs is to plan for the future power supply needs of its member cooperatives.

Wilson’s Rich Worsinger Recognized for Distinguished Service

Each year at the ElectriCities Annual Conference, we recognize individuals for their outstanding contributions to public power.

At the 2023 Annual Conference:

Rich Worsinger received the Distinguished Service Award.
Ethan Poppe received the Rising Star Award.
Paul Fisher received the Lifetime Achievement Award.

Let’s meet and celebrate the 2023 Public Power Distinguished Service Award recipient, Rich Worsinger.

Rich Worsinger, 2023 Public Power Distinguished Service Award recipient

The Distinguished Service Award recognizes leaders with 10 or more years of experience who have demonstrated exceptional leadership and dedication to public power, brought their organization to a new level of excellence, led by example, and inspired their employees and staff to improve processes, services, and operations.

Rich is undeniably one of those leaders.

He has been part of our North Carolina public power family since 2001, when he began serving as Director of Energy Resources at Rocky Mount Public Utilities. Since 2019 and until his retirement last month, Rich served as Director of Wilson Energy.

For nearly 22 years, Rich served on the North Carolina Eastern Municipal Power Agency Board of Commissioners, including when the $1.25 billion sale of the Agency’s assets to Duke was completed.

He served on NCEMPA’s Rate Committee for nearly 13 years and on the Utility Directors Advisory Committee for nearly eight years. He chaired that committee from 2018 to 2019.

Wilson City Manager Grant Goings said that during Rich’s time in Wilson, he continued and even improved upon Wilson Energy’s sterling reputation, despite the challenges of the pandemic and severe weather.

Under Rich’s leadership, the City received Public Power Awards of Excellence in all five categories for 2019, 2020, and 2021. And Wilson recently received awards in four categories for 2022.

The American Public Power Association designated Wilson Energy a Diamond-level Reliable Public Power Provider (or RP3) for 2020 through 2022, and just recently for 2023 through 2025. Diamond is the highest-level RP3 achievable.

The City of Rocky Mount received multiple Diamond-level RP3 designations under Rich’s leadership as well.

With Rich at the helm, Wilson Energy ranks among the most reliable public power providers nationwide. On average Wilson Energy customers experienced less than an hour’s outage each year under Rich’s leadership. That earned Wilson Energy Certificates of Excellence for Reliable Performance from APPA each of those years.

Rich’s service goes far beyond awards. That was obvious at his recent retirement party in Wilson. It was packed with public power leaders from communities large and small, from around the state and the country.

Rich has always welcomed opportunities to provide guidance and expertise outside of the communities he’s led. And many people have benefited from his ability to explain complex technical issues to non-technical people.

Many people have also benefitted and continue to benefit from Rich’s strategic, future-focused outlook and his willingness to make tough decisions that might not have been what people wanted to hear in the moment but were good for everyone in the long run.

Now that he’s retired, we see a lot of boating and family time in Rich’s future. That’s already started with he and his wife, Nancy, kicking off his retirement by cruising through Europe. From now on, we hope his tough decisions are limited to where to travel next.

Congratulations, Rich! And thank you for your many years of distinguished service.

Next, let’s meet the 2023 Rising Star Award recipient, Ethan Poppe, and the 2023 Lifetime Achievement Award recipient, Paul Fisher.

Clayton’s Ethan Poppe Named a Public Power Rising Star

Each year at the ElectriCities Annual Conference, we recognize individuals for their outstanding contributions to public power.

At the 2023 Annual Conference:

Ethan Poppe received the Rising Star Award.
Rich Worsinger received the Distinguished Service Award.
Paul Fisher received the Lifetime Achievement Award.

Let’s meet and celebrate the 2023 Public Power Rising Star Award recipient, Ethan Poppe.

2023 Public Power Rising Star Award recipient Ethan Poppe (center), with fellow Town of Clayton staff (left to right): Allen Turnage (Electric Director), Penny Adams (Program Support Specialist), Ann Game (Utilities & Billing Director), and Rich Cappola (Town Manager)

The Rising Star Award recognizes up-and-coming leaders who have less than 10 years of experience and who, in that relatively short time, have made significant and sustained contributions to the electric utility industry and to public power.

That perfectly describes Ethan.

Ethan joined the Town of Clayton in 2020 as an Energy Service Technician in the Electric Department. Even though he had no prior experience working in an electric department, his initiative and ability to learn new skills immediately made him a valuable member of the team.

Through staffing changes in the Electric Department, including a period without a dedicated Electric Department Director, Ethan stepped up and took on responsibilities above and beyond his job role. He worked with engineering, operations, and contracts & procurement staff, as well as outside consultants to increase his knowledge of electrical and project management principles.

Clayton’s Engineering Director, Joshua Baird, said Ethan’s professional growth, willingness to take on additional duties, and process improvements make him an asset to the department and the community and enable the Town to continue to provide exceptional service.

Joshua isn’t the only one singing Ethan’s praises. Ann Game, the Town’s Utilities & Billing Director, said she’s amazed at what Ethan has been able to do. From bidding, contracting, and load management analysis, to helping the Town receive APPA’s Gold-level RP3 designation, helping launch the Town’s new outage management program, and performing an EV study, Ann says Ethan accepts all challenges that come his way and is just an incredible all-around employee.

Clayton’s Electric Director, Allen Turnage, said, “We see a long future for Ethan at the Town of Clayton, and we appreciate his dedication to our community.”

And so do we. Congratulations, Ethan!

Next, let’s meet the 2023 Distinguished Service Award recipient, Rich Worsinger, and the 2023 Lifetime Achievement Award recipient, Paul Fisher.

4 NC Public Power Communities Receive Downtown Revitalization Grants

ElectriCities has awarded Downtown Revitalization Grants to four North Carolina public power communities: Albemarle, Statesville, Wake Forest, and Wilson. Each community will receive $10,000 to help achieve its downtown revitalization goals and spur downtown economic development.

The City of Albemarle’s grant proceeds will help fund its Downtown Catalyst Grant Program. Launched in 2022 to spur economic vitality in the downtown district, the program is a public/private partnership that assists businesses in the downtown municipal service district by offering grants to fund facade and/or building stabilization improvements, as well as internal improvements, including furniture, fixtures, and equipment.

The City of Statesville will use its funds to cover more than 20 large electric boxes downtown with local community art from the school system, established artists, and local flavor art wraps. The enhanced boxes will improve the aesthetic of Statesville’s downtown that’s rich with historical architecture and beautiful city-scaped sidewalks with trees and flowers.

The Town of Wake Forest will put its funds toward retaining Firebox Theatre, a performing arts venue in Downtown Wake Forest. Along with supporting theatrical productions and cultural experiences, the theatre serves local youth through educational programs, including introductory improvisation and dramatic performance.

The City of Wilson will put its funds toward adding a mural and improving 12 intersections with crosswalk murals in Historic Downtown Wilson. Part of its Wilson Street Works initiative, the project will support activity for local businesses, make the city more attractive, engage citizens and community groups, improve the quality of life and place, and promote bicycle and pedestrian safety.

Congratulations to these latest grant recipients! The next cycle for ElectriCities Downtown Revitalization Grants opens in September 2023.

Are You Billing All Your Customers?

Having unbilled accounts is more common than you may think, says ElectriCities’ Senior Utility Systems Analyst, Sherri Callery.

Consider this scenario:

A diligent billing clerk in a small public power community has a large customer’s complex account open in the billing system to perform account maintenance. As lunchtime approaches, several customers line up at once to pay or ask questions about their utility bills. The billing clerk leaves her desk to serve the Town’s customers.

When she returns to her desk, the billing system has logged her out. After taking care of several customer requests, she has forgotten about the account she was working on earlier.

Before the customers came in, she’d been changing the account’s rate assignment and route schedule. When the system logged her out, the account status was saved as “inactive.”

Without a rate schedule or route assignment saved in the legacy billing system, the account wasn’t billed.

In the real-life version of this story, the problem came to light during a Retail Billing Assessment a year later. That one account was underbilled over $100,000 that year, representing 3% of the Town’s total electric department revenues!

With staff turnover during that time, no one had noticed the unbilled account as the source of lower revenues. And the Town’s legacy billing system didn’t flag the unbilled account like a modern billing system might have.

This is just one example of how a utility can inadvertently fail to bill all its customers. And it’s one of the common issues a Retail Billing Assessment uncovers.

A Retail Billing Assessment is a thorough analysis and process review of a utility’s electric retail billing system. It identifies unbilled revenue sources and opportunities to improve accuracy and efficiency.

Sherri conducts Retail Billing Assessments for ElectriCities members and recommends having one every two to five years, before major system conversions, and immediately following any significant rate, technology, or staff changes. They’re free for Power Agency members.

Learn more about the power of ElectriCities’ Retail Billing Assessments and other lost revenue Sherri has discovered here.

And be sure to catch Sherri’s breakout session, “Retail Electric Billing: Revenue Lost & Found,” at the 2023 ElectriCities Annual Conference in August. She’ll highlight common sources of billing errors that can have huge impacts on your utility and your revenue.

To determine whether a Retail Billing Assessment should be on your utility’s to-do list, contact Sherri Callery.