United Power had a tremendous year in 2022, from our system’s performance in limiting outages and outage duration to our important decision to withdraw from our wholesale power contract and seek a new power supplier. 

Much is happening behind the scenes as we prepare for the next decade and beyond. The investments we make — strongly supported by your forward-thinking Board of Directors — position United Power for a future with diverse generation and storage technologies to meet the expectations of our members. 

Our dedicated employees are the force behind our successful operations. It takes a team with diverse skill sets and abilities. Our line crews are on call 24/7 to respond to unexpected emergencies and restore power during an outage, and the excellent efforts of our office staff keep the business flowing day-to-day.

Our system relies on dozens of complicated processes that must occur to keep the lights on, and some are not obvious. Supply chain disruption planning, understanding operational challenges through asset management, protecting critical infrastructure across a remote footprint, and understanding and communicating with our members are just a few of these important, yet hidden, processes. 

Electric utilities are one of the few businesses only recognized when they do not perform well. I am proud to say that thanks to our great team, our outage times were half the national average in 2022. Over the past several years, we have made a concerted effort to underground our lines where practical, use new and emerging technologies, and deploy additional sensors while focusing our maintenance efforts and investments on areas needing the most improvements. 

Our Cooperative Roadmap (Roadmap) outlines the key directions for United Power as we boldly move into the future — a future with a shared energy economy, more electrification, and higher demands for reliability and resilience. We are, as previously announced, preparing for a future with a new power supplier and getting ready for a power market to come in 2025. These moves take many months, if not years, of preparation. The team at United Power is working toward these goals. At the same time, we are understanding of the economic challenges our members are facing, and we are working to keep rates low and reliability high while meeting state regulations.

We are also in the process of seeking federal funding to help support our infrastructure, as laid out in the Inflation Reduction Act, in areas such as wildfire mitigation, electric vehicle charging, and sensors. Under the legislation, individual members and businesses may also have opportunities to apply for direct federal funding for efficiency upgrades, such as energy storage projects, heat pumps, insulation, and electrification of industrial processes. 

The upcoming year will be an exciting one as we continue the path outlined in our Roadmap. I am confident we will continue to be the best cooperative in Colorado and one of the best in the nation thanks to our tremendous team and the support from our Board, who are working to keep our communities strong. 

As always, please do not hesitate to reach out to me anytime.

Demand Rate Addresses How Members Use the System in Different Ways

It has been nearly four years since United Power adopted its current rate structure that includes an energy and demand charge. Separating demand from energy charges was implemented as a way to more fairly charge members for their electric usage and impact on the cooperative’s system. While more electric utilities are making the transition to a demand rate, United Power was among the first to introduce a demand charge across its membership. To help our members learn more about demand, we have produced numerous resources dedicated to educating members so they may make the most of the rate. 

What is Demand?

Demand refers simply to the maximum electricity needed at a given time and its impact on the system.  The demand charge is the total wattage of all the power being used at that highest interval and is billed as kilowatts (kW). As the cooperative gained new insights about how each meter impacts the system differently, the decision was made to utilize demand as a measurement that helps the cooperative more fairly bill members for their usage. Since some members use electricity in ways that make them more expensive to serve, demand helps to make sure everyone is paying their fair share. When the demand charge was first introduced, the majority of our members saw very little change. Most members saw only a $1–2 increase or decrease in their bill monthly. 

Is Demand an Added Charge?

No. The demand charge on your monthly bill was separated from the energy charge, essentially “unbundling” the details of your energy use. A traditional “blended” energy rate combines energy usage and demand into a single charge for all members. The blended rate placed an equal burden on all members for system maintenance costs despite differences in how they use energy. Under the old, blended rate some members were paying more than they should while others were not paying enough. United Power’s current rates separate demand — billed as the highest 15-minute interval of energy usage during each billing cycle — from the energy charge so members are now more fairly billed for both their usage and impact on the system. 

How To Reduce My Demand

Now that you can see the impact of both the total energy you use and your highest usage intervals, you have more control over your total bill. By reducing overall energy use with simple tips like turning off devices that aren’t in use and using a programmable thermostat, you can affect your energy charge. To lower your demand charge, avoid using multiple appliances at once. Set the delay feature on your dishwasher so it runs after all the lights are off and avoid doing laundry while the air conditioner is running. 

What is the Fixed Charge?

The “fixed charge” is a line item on your monthly billing statement that all members pay regardless of how much energy they use. The fixed charge is a standard amount and covers a portion of the costs for billing, collections, member services, and metering. These services are required whether you use a lot of energy, or none at all, and all residential members pay the same amount.

You can learn more about the fixed charge and other elements of your billing statement on our Understanding Your Bill page. 

Member Rate Options

United Power introduced demand with a corresponding reduction in its energy charge and most members did not experience significant changes to their monthly bills. However, you may still benefit by switching to a different rate. 

The cooperative offers a variety of rate options for residential members to fit the many ways members use electricity. To ask our trusted advisors if a new rate plan is right for you, schedule a phone assessment here. 

Members can find more information about United Power’s demand charge — including steps you can take to control your demand and a calculator to help understand how appliances may contribute to demand — on our Understanding Demand page.

Member-Funded Foundation has Distributed Nearly $170,000 This Year

Operation Round Up is poised to have one of its biggest giving years on record since the foundation’s inception more than 25 years ago. With another month remaining to consider grant requests, the foundation has already distributed nearly $170,000 to nonprofit organizations serving United Power members across the cooperative’s service territory. The foundation’s board will meet to review grant requests again in December. 

Members who enroll in Round Up will have their monthly billing statements rounded up to the next whole dollar, which averages about $.50 per statement — or just $6 per year. Participation is voluntary and can be ended at any time. Donated funds are distributed to four partner nonprofit organizations representing members in each of the cooperative’s districts, as well as other organizations that submit grant requests. The board, made up of fellow United Power members, meets five times throughout the year to review requests. 

As a voluntary foundation, members form the backbone of Round Up. Because the growing number of people in need is stretching local nonprofits beyond their means, United Power is making a call to its membership to consider enrolling. Your contribution will go further than you imagine and could mean another family has food on their table, clothes on their back, a warm place to sleep, or any other number of needs met. More than 20,000 members are currently enrolled in the program.  

“We participate in Round Up,” said one Commerce City member when asked about the program. “To us, it is just a monthly reminder, however small, that everyone who benefits is part of one big family.”

Members who are interested in enrolling in Round Up or increasing their contribution can go to complete a quick form on our Round Up page or call Member Services at 303-637-1300.

Rebates for the purchase of new refrigerators, freezers, and clothes washers will be discontinued in 2023. Members who plan to apply for any of these appliance rebates must purchase before Dec. 31, 2022. Rebate applications must be received within 90 days or no later than Dec. 31, 2022, whichever comes first. Rebates will not be issued for refrigerators, freezers, or clothes washers purchased in 2023. 

Appliance rebates for electric clothes dryers, induction cooktops, and refrigerator/freezer recycling will continue to be offered in 2023. In addition, United Power members also qualify for water heater, whole house fan, heat pump, smart thermostat, and electric outdoor power equipment rebates. The application deadline for all rebates is 90 days from the date of purchase. 

United Power evaluates its menu of rebates and energy efficiency programs annually. Rebates are offered to help improve the overall load factor of the cooperative, to help members adopt new energy efficient technologies, or to lower the upfront costs of emerging technology. Rebates may end due to improvements in appliance efficiencies or when market prices come down. New rebates and programs are added for members as emerging technologies are developed. 

Find United Power’s current rebates and programs menu at www.unitedpower.com/rebates.