This past year may have challenged many of our members to find ways to use energy more efficiently with many families staying home for both work and school during the pandemic. While the end may be in sight, members should remain vigilant about using energy efficiently to help keep bills low and manageable. United Power is committed to providing members with the information and resources they need to take control of their energy usage throughout the pandemic and after it is over.

Rates that Work for You

With families spending more time at home over the past year, our members may have become increasingly aware of how they use energy. As we roll into the new year, now is a good time to ask your cooperative about your rate and choose one that works for you and your family.

United Power expanded its menu of residential rates over the past couple years so we now offer several rates designed to fit a variety of lifestyles. The flexibility of available rates enables our members to review their energy use habits and select one that most closely fits their usage patterns. For example, if you’ve effectively managed to switch your usage to off-peak hours, perhaps the Peak Time of Day rate, which does not charge for demand during those hours, would be the best option for your household. The cooperative’s Board of Directors also approved a budget this past year that allowed rates to remain unchanged in 2021, which may come as a relief for many United Power members.

For more information on United Power’s residential rates, you can flip to page 6 or go to our Rates page. To have a dedicated Energy Management Specialist review your usage and recommend a rate option, call 303- 637-1300.

Take Advantage of Free Member Resources

United Power has rolled out several programs and tools to help members understand their usage. While our online account portal provides information related to your energy usage, the Power Portal is a member tool that goes deeper into your usage patterns. With the Power Portal, you can access your complete energy consumption portfolio in 15-minute intervals throughout the day to get a clear look at how you use your energy. You can then compare days or months to determine what behaviors are driving your usage and make small or large changes to save you over time and help keep bills manageable. You can find out more about the Power Portal here.

In addition to this resource, the cooperative has also launched calculators to help members understand what drives their demand or how charging an electric vehicle can impact their usage. More resources may be coming in the future, and all these tools are available free to United Power members.

The ‘Smart’ Way to Save on Heating this Winter

Nearly half of our energy use comes from keeping our homes at a comfortable temperature year-round, making it the most expensive part of our electric bills. A simple adjustment to your thermostat may be all it takes to realize quick savings on heating and cooling your home, and it’s unlikely you’ll even notice the slight change in temperature. The Department of Energy estimates a savings of approximately 1 percent per degree adjustment per 8 hours. Adjusting the temperature to a greater degree when you’re away from home may result in savings up to 10 percent annually. The most efficient way to manage your heating and cooling is installing a smart thermostat, which gives you control even when you’re not home. Many smart thermostats can also learn your schedule, analyze weather and adjust automatically.

Have you ever considered your water heater as a potential user of excess energy? Turns out, keeping your water warmer than necessary can also cause small spikes in energy use. Consider turning down the temperature to the warm setting (120°F) to save a little extra.

Watch for Vampire Loads

The way many families use energy makes it difficult to notice the small things that use energy, but those small uses can quickly add up. Over time, small loads may lead to noticeable changes on your electric bills. This is increasingly the case as more members make the switch to chargeable devices and electronics that use energy even when they appear to be off. These are known as “vampire loads.” Gaming systems or TVs set to standby or chargers left plugged in when not in use are examples of small things that can contribute to these loads, which account for approximately 10 percent of the average household’s energy use. Many devices are now available that can control the flow of energy to devices that might cause these loads, such as smart power strips or plugs that can be turned off or on either manually or remotely (some via WiFi and others Bluetooth).

Talk to a United Power Energy Management Specialist

A United Power Energy Management Specialist is available to advise and assist you with your energy concerns. An Energy Management Specialist can walk through your concerns, analyze your usage and provide you with practical information you can use to control your energy usage. They can walk you through available rates, programs and rebates to ensure you’re maximizing your energy savings.

Ultimately, energy savings comes down to the small things. Turn off lights and ceiling fans when you aren’t in a room. Turn off power strips to televisions, gaming systems and other electronics, including chargers, that are not in use. Take shorter showers. Consolidate loads of laundry and dishes to make the best use of hot water. Stagger the use of appliances to avoid a higher demand. Remind everyone in your family to make energy savings a priority. Work with them to start a conversation about saving energy, and you’ll see the savings every month. Enter into the new year resolved to be more energy efficient.

Cooperative Board of Directors Approves 2021 Budget at November Meeting

United Power is pleased to announce there will be no rate increase in 2021. The decision from the cooperative’s Board of Directors was made in November upon approval of the 2021 budget and rate structure. For many members, who have had to endure a tumultuous past few months or have been impacted by the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, the news could not have come at a better time.

Rates were able to remain steady thanks to the forethought of cooperative leadership, who recognized the potential financial impact the pandemic could have and took immediate action to reduce spending in various departments. Just as businesses and homeowners adjusted spending, each team at United Power was tasked with evaluating initiatives that could either save money or be delayed without impacting service.

“United Power has been fortunate during this time,” said Laurie Burkhart, the cooperative’s chief financial officer. “We haven’t seen the same level of impact as many other cooperatives, and that’s due in large part to the actions our teams have taken, as well as continued growth we’ve seen. It’s allowed us to keep our rates from increasing and provide some small relief to our members.”

A variety of factors allowed the cooperative to keep rates steady, but perhaps chief among them has been the amount of growth seen throughout the service area, despite the pandemic. The slowdown United Power anticipated on its system never materialized. Instead, another strong year in residential and business growth, as well as load growth, helped fuel its ability to weather the storm. Other shifts in the ways our members interacted with us this year made small, but noticeable, changes to costs. Member enrollment in services like online account management and paperless billing was also a factor, which helped the cooperative improve efficiencies and provided real savings.

While keeping the current rate structures may ease the burden for many residential members, it could be especially impactful for local organizations like school districts and businesses that may be facing tough budget years ahead as a result of slower sales or state budget cuts. Steady electric rates are one less thing for larger members to plan for when making end of year budget adjustments.

Many members may realize some small benefit from stable rates in the coming year, but United Power has also prioritized the pursuit of more affordable and competitive rates for several years. The cooperative has had ongoing discussions with its wholesale power provider, Tri-State Generation & Transmission, that would allow it to eventually lower rates as much as 15% to 25% in the next few years.

“United Power has worked closely with Tri-State for several years to provide reliable and affordable rates to our members,” said acting CEO Bryant Robbins. “Efforts continue to be made in looking at all of our options with Tri-State to reach our rate reduction goals. We are also looking at other power supply options should we not be able to come to an acceptable agreement. My hope is to provide our Board with a couple of great options so that they can make the decision that they feel is in the best interest of our membership.”

In a cooperative, we all share in the expense and prosperity, and members who were able to continue paying bills helped United Power maintain its positive financial condition. For those who were impacted by job loss or illness and unable to pay their bills, the cooperative established the Co-op Cares Fund to provide financial assistance and ease the burden on both members and the co-op. This year $300,000 was allocated to the fund from unclaimed capital credits. In October, the Board approved an additional allocation of $250,000 for members in 2021.

United Power understands our members have different needs and use electricity in vastly different ways. United Power’s residential rates are designed so members have the option to choose one that most closely fits how they use energy. When the cooperative’s demand rate debuted in January 2019, it separated the energy and demand components and allowed the cooperative to more fairly charge members for both their energy use and impact on the grid. Along with it, the cooperative also rolled out the Smart Choice Rate, which provided two different peak demand charges and a much lower energy charge. Earlier this year, United Power added a Peak Time of Day rate, which encourages members to switch their usage to off-peak hours. The new rate charges a higher demand for on-peak usage, but does not charge for demand during off-peak hours. The cooperative’s standard and time of day rates also remain options for members.

However you use your energy, the flexibility of the cooperative’s residential rates should meet most members’ needs. You can compare the demand and energy charges of each rate and choose the one that most closely fits how you and your family use energy on the Residential Rates page.