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RMEL Electric Energy Issue 2 2014
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Transcript of RMEL Electric Energy Issue 2 2014
SPOTLIGHT ON CRITICAL ENERGY ISSUES
ISSUE 2 / 2014 www.RMEL.org
AN ELECTRIC ENERGY INDUSTRY REVOLUTION
316B REGULATORY STRATEGIES
CITY OF CODY’S UTILITY UPGRADE
EVOLVING STAKEHOLDER ENGAGEMENT
LEADERSHIP IN TODAY’S WORKFORCE
PROJECTING FUTURE POWER DEMAND
Nathan Bingham
Distribution Services Business Unit Director
POWER Engineers, Power Delivery
From traditional poles and wires services
to assessing, designing and installing
next generation technologies, Nathan
Bingham and his team at POWER
Engineers have the resources,
experience and expertise you need
to make all your distribution goals.
Download our Distribution Services brochure at: POWERENG.COM/DISTRIBUTION22
RECRUIT POWER FOR ALL YOUR DISTRIBUTION NEEDS.
CLICK: POWERENG.COM/DISTRIBUTION22EMAIL: Nathan Bingham at [email protected]
Nathan Bingham
Distribution Services Business Unit Director
POWER Engineers, Power Delivery
From traditional poles and wires services
to assessing, designing and installing
next generation technologies, Nathan
Bingham and his team at POWER
Engineers have the resources,
experience and expertise you need
to make all your distribution goals.
Download our Distribution Services brochure at: POWERENG.COM/DISTRIBUTION22
RECRUIT POWER FOR ALL YOUR DISTRIBUTION NEEDS.
CLICK: POWERENG.COM/DISTRIBUTION22EMAIL: Nathan Bingham at [email protected]
4 E L E C T R I C E N E R G Y | S U M M E R 2 0 1 4
FEATURES 11 Emerging Power Plant
Wastewater Treatment Issues By Brad Buecker, Process Specialist, Kiewit Power Engineers
16 Utility Transformation: Utilizing Top-to-Bottom Teamwork By Bert Pond, Electrical Engineer, City of Cody
20 Building Relationships & Reputations through Robust Public Involvement and Early Stakeholder Engagement By Theresa McClure, HDR, Omaha, Strategic Communications & Public Involvement Manager; Emily Hyland, HDR, Minneapolis, Strategic Communications & Public Involvement Manager; Katie Hatfield Edstrom, Ph.D, HDR, Omaha, Strategic Communications & Public Involvement Senior Coordinator
DEPARTMENTS. 06 Board of Directors and
Foundation Board of Directors
08 2014 Fall Management, Engineering and Operations Conference
36 RMEL Membership Listings
40 2014 Calendar of Events
42 Index to Advertisers
26 Changing Leadership Styles: A Matter of Habit By Jim Walters, EDD, Owner, Power of Learning, Inc.
32 U.S. Electricity Sales: Decoupled from Growth? By Paul Narduzzo, Sr. VP Electric Distribution, CoBank and Taylor Gunn, Economist, CoBank
11
20
16cont
ents
26
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serving the Heavy Industrial sector. We maintain offices
across North America staffed with dedicated engineering
and construction professionals who have the experience to
effectively manage complex projects. From conceptual design
studies to plant modifications to complete greenfield power
stations, Lauren has the technical expertise, experience and
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laurenec.com
Power Generation
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Chemicals/Process
DESIGNING AND BUILDING SUCCESS
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6 E L E C T R I C E N E R G Y | S U M M E R 2 0 1 4
RMEL INFORMATION
RMEL Board of Directors
OFFICERS
PRESIDENT Steve Bridges Zachry Holdings, Inc. VP & Power Executive
VICE PRESIDENT Walt Jones Intermountain Rural Electric Assn. Assistant General Manager, Operations & Engineering
VICE PRESIDENT, FINANCE Rebecca Shiflea Leidos Sr. Project Manager
CHAIR, FUNDRAISING Jim Helvig AMEC Director, Power Delivery
CHAIR, MEMBER DEVELOPMENT Mike Jones SRP Director
BOARD OF DIRECTORS
Kent Cheese TestAmerica Laboratories, Inc. VP, Sales
Paul Compton Kiewit Sr. VP, Business Development
Kelly Harrison Westar Energy VP, Transmission
STAFF LIAISON Natalie Andersen RMEL Manager, Member Services & Retention
Rick Putnicki RMEL Executive Director
Foundation Board of Directors
OFFICERS
PRESIDENT Dan Schmidt Black & Veatch Corp. Sr. VP, Power Generation Services
PRESIDENT ELECT Stuart Wevik Black Hills Corporation VP, Utility Operations
PAST PRESIDENT Andy Ramirez El Paso Electric Company VP, Power Generation
VICE PRESIDENT, FINANCE Tom Kent Nebraska Public Power District VP & COO
VICE PRESIDENT, EDUCATION Tony Montoya Western Area Power Administration COO
VICE PRESIDENT, VITAL ISSUES Mike Hummel SRP Associate General Manager
VICE PRESIDENT, MEMBERSHIP Scott Fry Mycoff, Fry & Prouse LLC Managing Director
VICE PRESIDENT, MEMBER SERVICES Kelly Harrison Westar Energy VP, Transmission
DIRECTORS
Paul Barham CPS Energy Interim Sr. VP, Energy Delivery Services
Doug Bennion PacifiCorp VP, Engineering Services & Asset Management
Joel Bladow Tri State Generation and Transmission Sr. VP, Transmission Assn.
Tim Brossart Xcel Energy VP, Construction Operations & Maintenance
Jon Hansen Omaha Public Power District VP, Energy Production & Marketing
Tom McKenna UNS Energy Corporation VP, Energy Delivery
Tammy McLeod Arizona Public Service VP, Resource Management
Cheryl Mele Austin Energy COO
Mike Morris Zachry Holdings, Inc. VP, Business Development, Engineering
Jackie Sargent Platte River Power Authority General Manager
Neal Walker Texas New Mexico Power President, TNMP SECRETARY
Rick Putnicki RMEL Executive Director
Electric Energy available in digital format
– email, share, link. ACCESS FROM THE
RMEL.ORG HOME PAGE
Engineering, Surveying, and Consulting Services
EMPLOYEE-OWNEDwww.ulteig.com • 877-858-3449
Bismarck • Cedar Rapids • Denver • Detroit Lakes • Fargo • Sioux Falls • St. Paul • Williston
Leaders in Engineering Energy Solutions
Utilities need to deliver power they generate quickly and reliably. Ulteig delivers the expertise and knowledge to help make that possible.
With Ulteig’s wide array of services and extensive experience, we provide solutions to help manage and upgrade existing infrastructure while building a foundation for future growth. Our in-depth knowledge of engineering services, techniques and project management provides a consistent and quality approach to your projects from start to finish.
Learn more about what Ulteig offers you in developing your next step in power generation and delivery systems. Visit our website at www.Ulteig.com.
Ulteig is proud to support future generations of
engineers pursuing careers in the electric industry by
providing scholarships through the RMEL Foundation. In
this way, we demonstrate our enthusiasm for and
commitment to the future of our industry, and the
engineering professionals of the future.
2014 RMEL Platinum Champion
8 E L E C T R I C E N E R G Y | S U M M E R 2 0 1 4
2014 FALL CONVENTION
JO I N E L E C T R I C E N E R G Y
industry senior executives for
RMEL’s 2014 Fall Executive Lead-
ership and Management Convention
Sept. 14-16 in San Antonio, TX. The
theme of this year’s Fall Convention is
Reliability, Relevance & Reinvention:
Sustaining Our Way of Life.
The RMEL Fall Convention attracts
over 300 senior-level utility managers
and executives. Find chief executives,
company officers, vice presidents,
general managers, decision makers and
senior management of energy compa-
nies at this event. Attendees represent
the many utility ownerships including
IOU, G&T, municipalities, cooperative
and government agencies.
The keynote speaker, Michael
Morell, Former Deputy and Acting
Director, CIA, will speak about the
Golden Age of Intelligence. The intel-
ligence community has never been
more important to national security
than it is today. It is simply not pos-
sible for the president and his national
security team to understand the world
and make the decisions necessary to
protect the country without first-rate
intelligence. However, the need for this
intelligence also raises understandable
concerns about privacy and civil liber-
ties right here in the United States and
its impact on U.S. businesses selling
their products and services overseas. In
presentations, Michael Morell will share
insights on how we should think about
the intelligence community and how it
affects our lives, businesses, and jobs.
In a presentation about Google
making its way into the electric
energy industry, smart grid thought
leader Jesse Berst, Managing Direc-
tor, Global Smart Energy, will invite
attendees to consider the industry’s
past, present and future. He will
remind everyone of the important
lessons to be learned from “Electric-
ity 1.0” and our past. He will describe
the pressures and possibilities of our
present. Finally, he will explain why the
Sources: Edison Electric Institute, 2014, www.eei.org/electricity101
100% of RMEL Fall
Convention
attendees
will have a unique
opportunity to
network and learn
from electric energy
leaders from all
types of electric
utilities and service
companies.
The electric power industry is an
$860,000,000,000
industry that provides a
vital service to modern life.
Industries and resources that
run on electricity now account
for 60% of our nation’s gross
domestic product (GDP)
and these same segments now
account for 85% of GDP growth.
Electric company energy efficiency programs
saves 124 Billion kilowatt-hours
of electricity in 2012. That’s enough
electricity to power nearly 11.5 million
average U.S. homes for one year.
DEMAND FOR ELECTRICITY IS
PROJECTED TO GROW 23%
BY 2040 AS THE NUMBER
OF PRODUCTS POWERED BY
ELECTRICITY INCREASES.
23%
America’s electric company’s employ
500,000+ workers.
The 2012 National
Fuel Mix included:
37.4% coal
30.3%
natural gas
19%
nuclear
6.7% hydro
5.4%
non-hydro
renewables
.06%
fuel oil
.06% other
COALNATURAL GASNUCLEARHYDRO
NON-HYDRO RENEWABLESFUEL OILOTHER
11.5 million
SINCE 1990
79% - SO2 EMISSIONS
76% - NOx EMISSIONS
REAL GDP 69%
ELECTRICITY USE 36%
Sources: Edison Electric Institute, 2014, www.eei.org/electricity101
100% of RMEL Fall
Convention
attendees
will have a unique
opportunity to
network and learn
from electric energy
leaders from all
types of electric
utilities and service
companies.
The electric power industry is an
$860,000,000,000
industry that provides a
vital service to modern life.
Industries and resources that
run on electricity now account
for 60% of our nation’s gross
domestic product (GDP)
and these same segments now
account for 85% of GDP growth.
Electric company energy efficiency programs
saves 124 Billion kilowatt-hours
of electricity in 2012. That’s enough
electricity to power nearly 11.5 million
average U.S. homes for one year.
DEMAND FOR ELECTRICITY IS
PROJECTED TO GROW 23%
BY 2040 AS THE NUMBER
OF PRODUCTS POWERED BY
ELECTRICITY INCREASES.
23%
America’s electric company’s employ
500,000+ workers.
The 2012 National
Fuel Mix included:
37.4% coal
30.3%
natural gas
19%
nuclear
6.7% hydro
5.4%
non-hydro
renewables
.06%
fuel oil
.06% other
COALNATURAL GASNUCLEARHYDRO
NON-HYDRO RENEWABLESFUEL OILOTHER
11.5 million
SINCE 1990
79% - SO2 EMISSIONS
76% - NOx EMISSIONS
REAL GDP 69%
ELECTRICITY USE 36%
The electric power industry is an
$860,000,000,000
industry that provides a
vital service to modern life.
America’s electric company’s employ
500,000+ workers.SINCE 1990
79% - SO2 EMISSIONS
76% - NOx EMISSIONS
REAL GDP 69%
ELECTRICITY USE 36%
Sources: Edison Electric Institute, 2014, www.eei.org/electricity101
100% of RMEL Fall
Convention
attendees
will have a unique
opportunity to
network and learn
from electric energy
leaders from all
types of electric
utilities and service
companies.
Industries and resources that
run on electricity now account
for 60% of our nation’s gross
domestic product (GDP)
and these same segments now
account for 85% of GDP growth.
Electric company energy efficiency programs
saves 124 Billion kilowatt-hours
of electricity in 2012. That’s enough
electricity to power nearly 11.5 million
average U.S. homes for one year.
DEMAND FOR ELECTRICITY IS
PROJECTED TO GROW 23%
BY 2040 AS THE NUMBER
OF PRODUCTS POWERED BY
ELECTRICITY INCREASES.
23%
The 2012 National
Fuel Mix included:
37.4% coal
30.3%
natural gas
19%
nuclear
6.7% hydro
5.4%
non-hydro
renewables
.06%
fuel oil
.06% other
COALNATURAL GASNUCLEARHYDRO
NON-HYDRO RENEWABLESFUEL OILOTHER
11.5 million
Sources: Edison Electric Institute, 2014, www.eei.org/electricity101
100% of RMEL Fall
Convention
attendees
will have a unique
opportunity to
network and learn
from electric energy
leaders from all
types of electric
utilities and service
companies.
The electric power industry is an
$860,000,000,000
industry that provides a
vital service to modern life.
Industries and resources that
run on electricity now account
for 60% of our nation’s gross
domestic product (GDP)
and these same segments now
account for 85% of GDP growth.
Electric company energy efficiency programs
saves 124 Billion kilowatt-hours
of electricity in 2012. That’s enough
electricity to power nearly 11.5 million
average U.S. homes for one year.
DEMAND FOR ELECTRICITY IS
PROJECTED TO GROW 23%
BY 2040 AS THE NUMBER
OF PRODUCTS POWERED BY
ELECTRICITY INCREASES.
23%
America’s electric company’s employ
500,000+ workers.
The 2012 National
Fuel Mix included:
37.4% coal
30.3%
natural gas
19%
nuclear
6.7% hydro
5.4%
non-hydro
renewables
.06%
fuel oil
.06% other
COALNATURAL GASNUCLEARHYDRO
NON-HYDRO RENEWABLESFUEL OILOTHER
11.5 million
SINCE 1990
79% - SO2 EMISSIONS
76% - NOx EMISSIONS
REAL GDP 69%
ELECTRICITY USE 36%
100% of RMEL Fall
Convention
attendees
will have a unique
opportunity to
network and learn
from electric energy
leaders from all
types of electric
utilities and service
companies.
The electric power industry is an
$860,000,000,000
industry that provides a
vital service to modern life.
Industries and resources that
run on electricity now account
for 60% of our nation’s gross
domestic product (GDP)
and these same segments now
account for 85% of GDP growth.
23%
America’s electric company’s employ
500,000+ workers.
The 2012 National
Fuel Mix included:
37.4% coal
30.3%
natural gas
19%
nuclear
6.7% hydro
5.4%
non-hydro
renewables
.06%
fuel oil
.06% other
COALNATURAL GASNUCLEARHYDRO
NON-HYDRO RENEWABLESFUEL OILOTHER
SINCE 1990
79% - SO2 EMISSIONS
76% - NOx EMISSIONS
REAL GDP 69%
ELECTRICITY USE 36%
RELIABILITY,RELEVANCE &REINVENTION:SUSTAINING OUR WAY OF LIFES E P T E M B E R 1 4 - 1 6 , 2 0 1 4 | S A N A N T O N I O , T E X A S
SUSTAINING OUR INDUSTRY AT RMEL’S 111th FALL CONVENTION
W W W . R M E L . O R G 9
time is right for utilities to invent their
own future – or risk having that future
decided by outsiders.
Yolanda France, Director, Cus-
tomer Contact Operations, SRP, will
discuss SRP M-Power and explore the
benefits of prepaid electric services. To
stay relevant with evolving customer
needs, many industries are moving to-
wards “pre-paid” plans. To help rate-
payers, some utilities are now offering
free nights and weekends as well as
pre-paid cards. Does our industry
need to change the business model
for how our product is perceived and
used? Is it time to move away from
the typical rate structure?
Jim Fama, VP, Energy Delivery,
EEI, will discuss emerging physical and
cyber security threats facing the in-
dustry, including a discussion regard-
ing implementation of the new NERC
Physical Security Standard.
This year’s CEO Panel will give
attendees with a future look at the
electric utility industry. The barrage
of pending regulations, economic
uncertainty and ever-increasing
speed of communication are push-
ing electric utilities to act faster than
ever before. Doyle Beneby, President
&Chief Executive Officer, CPS Energy,
John Hewa, Chief Executive Officer,
Pedernales Electric Cooperative, Pat
Reiten, President & CEO, Pacific Pow-
er, Hunter Hunt, Chairman & Chief
Executive Officer, Sharyland Utilities
and Kenneth Zagzebski, President,
U.S. Strategic Business Unit, AES, will
share their strategies for the future
and how they’re going to get there. A
brief discussion from each CEO, fol-
lowed by an open Q&A session with
the attendees, will convey the outlook
for the different types of utilities.
Erwin Furukawa, CEO, EF Strat-
egy and Planning Group, will present
on creating a model that balances
customer, public policy and util-
ity goals. Today we are seeing major
changes evolving in our industry. New
technologies are emerging that are
becoming more viable alternatives;
new market entrants are introduc-
ing energy services as part of their
portfolio; customers are becoming
more adept and regulators are in the
pivotal position to create a new en-
ergy market place. As these changes
evolve, it is critical for utility leaders
to focus on customers and work with
policy makers in shaping a model that
meets customer, public policy and
utility goals.
Dr. Dale Klein, Associate Vice
Chancellor for Research, University of
Texas, will discuss how a nuclear plant
works and the safety systems that are
in place. The status of the United States
and worldwide use of nuclear power
plants will be described. Also included
will be a discussion of the accident at
Fukushima Daiichi.
Foreign plans for the future of
energy are moving in many direc-
tions. As Germany is in the process of
going back to coal, the UAE is building
nuclear like crazy. Can the U.S. learn
from the foreign energy market? In
order to stop “reacting”, do we need
a 10 year plan? Gary Rackliffe, VP,
Smart Grids North America, ABB, will
discuss global trends and energy plans
for the future.
Thomas Casey, Managing Princi-
pal, Discussion Partner Collaborative
LLC, will focus on the research which
led to the best-selling book Executive
800.438.0790
Transitions-Plotting the Opportunity!
The presentation will highlight first
party research with over 2,000 senior
executives, and client experience
with over 200 senior executives. The
speech will contain insights on three
aligned topics, including enterprise
succession plans, capability deficien-
cies of successors and post exit plan-
ning challenges for executives. PDFs
of the book and related blogs and
articles will be made available.
The Fall Executive Leadership and
Management Convention is a three-
day event that begins on a Sunday
with a golf outing followed by an
evening reception hosted by the RMEL
Champions. Monday is a full-day of
educational presentations ending with
an RMEL Champions reception, din-
ner and the RMEL Foundation Silent
Auction. The final day includes the
RMEL annual meeting and a half day
of presentations. A guest program,
awards presentation and plenty of
time to relax and network are also part
of the tradition. Go to www.RMEL.org
for more information and registration.
111th AnnualExecutive Leadership and Management
EMERGING Power Plant Wastewater
TREATMENT ISSUESB Y B R A D B U E C K E R , P R O C E S S S P E C I A L I S T , K I E W I T P O W E R E N G I N E E R S
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Analysis
W W W . R M E L . O R G 11
WHEN I BEGAN MY UTILITY CAREER AT CITY Water, Light & Power in 1981, National Pollutant Discharge
Elimination System (NPDES) guidelines focused upon a
small core of primary impurities in wastewater and/or
cooling water discharge streams. These included total
suspended solids (TSS), oil and grease (O&G), pH, and free
chlorine (or other oxidizing biocide). A common guideline
is shown below in abbreviated form.
At that time, many power plants utilized once-through
cooling systems, so these limits were often easy to
achieve in that stream. The majority of issues arose at
coal-fired power plants from the discharges of coal pile
runoff ponds and wet ash disposal ponds. The constitu-
ents in these streams that required the most oversight
tended to be TSS and pH, but straightforward methods
were available to control this chemistry. Per proposed
regulations and additional effluent limitations the waste
water treatment chemistry and treatment train will be-
come more complex.
New DevelopmentsDue to the relative low cost of natural gas, penetration
of renewable power, and environmental regulations, coal-
fired power is being replaced by simple- and combined-
cycle generation. Due to 316b water regulations, which
Constituent Monthly Average (Limit or Range)
Free Available Chlorine 0.2 mg/l
O&G 10 mg/l
pH (range) 6.0 – 9.0
TSS 30 mg/l
TABLE 1: AN ABBREVIATED NPDES EXAMPLE
EMERGING Power Plant Wastewater
TREATMENT ISSUESB Y B R A D B U E C K E R , P R O C E S S S P E C I A L I S T , K I E W I T P O W E R E N G I N E E R S
12 E L E C T R I C E N E R G Y | S U M M E R 2 0 1 4
are designed to protect aquatic life from
destruction in cooling water intakes, all
of the many combined-cycle requests
for proposals (RFPs) received by Kiewit
in the last several years specify a cool-
ing tower, or an air-cooled condenser,
rather than once-through cooling. A
cooling tower produces the largest
liquid discharge at these plants. These
discharges are now being regulated
either prior to or after co-mingling with
other plant wastewater discharges per
current guidelines or eventually the pro-
posed Steam Electric Generating Station
Effluent Guidelines (SEGSEG). EPA
regional water programs and state water
programs are adding additional param-
eters to individual plant NPDES permits
as they come up for renewal. Some of
these additions can be attributed to
the Toxic Maximum Daily Limit (TMDL)
program within the states, but some
parameters have been unexpected.
In some cases, limits are being
placed on effluent total dissolved solids
(TDS). This has very important consequences for cooling
tower operation. An example comes from a power plant in a
southern state. Prior to 2013, the plant’s NPDES permit only
called for monitoring of TDS. The plant’s new state permit
imposes an average monthly limit of 1,200 mg/l. But, the
very nature of cooling tower operation causes an increase
in solids concentration due to evaporation of water from
the tower. Consider a makeup water that contains 400
mg/l TDS. If the wastewater guideline is 1,200 mg/L, the
tower cycles of concentration (COC) is limited to three. The
blowdown volume at low COCs can be quite significant for a
large cooling tower.
Another constituent appearing in some permits is sulfate
(SO4). Sulfuric acid feed to cooling tower makeup has been a
common method to remove bicarbonate alkalinity and thus
minimize calcium carbonate (CaCO3) scaling in the con-
denser and cooling system.
H2SO
4 + Ca(HCO
3)2 + CaSO
4 + 2H
2O + 2CO
2
Tighter regulations on sulfate in the discharge stream
may eliminate this straightforward method of scale control
at some plants. Phosphorus is also being banned in many
waste streams. Phosphorus serves as a nutrient for plant
growth, and when released to open bodies of water initiates
and propagates algae blooms. The difficulty is that a very
common cooling water treatment method relies on the use
of ortho-phosphate and organic phosphates (phosphonates)
for both corrosion and scale control.
Heavy metals are also on the list, with a primary example
being zinc. This element was once an integral part of the
phosphate/phosphonate programs mentioned above, as it
assists with corrosion protection. Zinc’s use will be curtailed
due to discharge limitations contained in the SEGSEG. The
US EPA is proposing a 1 part-per-million (ppm) limit on zinc
and 0.2 ppm limit on chromium in cooling tower discharge.
Another metal that is now appearing on some permits is
copper, in which the discharge limit may be below 30 parts-
per-billion (ppb). At these very low limits, copper discharge
can potentially be a problem from units equipped with
copper-alloy condenser tubes. Another source of copper
is wooden cooling towers. Copper compounds were often
utilized as a wood preservative.
Control MethodsAdjusting to new NPDES guidelines is not simple or
inexpensive. Sometimes other factors compete against any
efforts. A primary example is the growing requirement to
use recycle water in place of fresh water as plant makeup.
Recycle water, such as tertiary-treated wastewater, can have
quite variable concentrations of many impurities, two of
which are phosphorous and ammonia. The latter is increas-
ingly appearing in discharge permits, as ammonia can be
lethal to aquatic creatures, and like phosphorus serves as a
nutrient for toxic algae blooms.
For plants facing tight TDS restrictions, reducing the
cooling tower COC is a method to lower the dissolved solids
W W W . R M E L . O R G 13
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can integrate variable Frequency
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and Soft Start Starters in our
replacement bucket assemblies to
lower your energy consumption.
This program pays for itself in a
few short years.
content of the waste stream, but that technique in turn
increases the discharge volume. This may or may not be a
problem depending upon the environmental authorities in
charge of permitting. For new plants, this factor could be
very important with regard to plant location and the quality
of the water available for makeup.
The emerging restrictions on sulfate in the discharge
may, in some cases, eliminate makeup water acid
treatment as a scale-control mechanism. An alterna-
tive method to reduce the threat of calcium carbonate
scaling, albeit at considerable expense and increased
system complexity, is cold lime softening. This technique
will lower both the calcium and bicarbonate alkalinity
of the stream, but not without proper operator control
and monitoring of the unit. A factor that may favorably
influence softening for some applications is the ability to
also include magnesium feed for reduction of silica. Silica
chemistry is quite complex, but a general rule-of-thumb
suggests 150 ppm as the silica limit in the cooling tower
recirculating water, with possibly an upper limit of 200
ppm or so with some of the newer chemical treatment
programs. This is often not an issue with surface water
supplies, as these may contain only small silica con-
centrations. However, groundwater is a fairly common
source for cooling tower makeup, and some supplies,
particularly in the West, may contain 30 to 50 ppm of
silica. Thus, the high makeup silica will greatly limit the
cycles of concentration in the tower, unless some of it is
removed from the makeup.
If phosphorus discharge is prohibited, one possible al-
ternative for recirculating water treatment is an all-polymer
treatment program. 1A simple polymer, often a polyacrylate,
typically is included in a phosphate/phosphonate program
to act as a sequestering agent and/or crystal modifier. An
all-polymer program on the other hand relies on what are
known as co- and ter-polymers that have more than one
functional group to act as the sequestering agents/crys-
tal modifiers. If an all-polymer program is not an option,
phosphate can very readily be removed from water streams
by reaction with iron or aluminum in a clarifier. Of course,
R E F E R E N C E S1. Buecker, B., Post, R., P.E., and R. Aull, P.E., “Chemical Treatment and Fill Selection Methods to Minimize Scaling/Fouling in Cooling Towers”; from the Proceedings of the 72nd Annual International Water Conference, November 13-17, Orlando, Florida.
14 E L E C T R I C E N E R G Y | S U M M E R 2 0 1 4
wastewater clarification increases the com-
plexity of the wastewater treatment process.
Given the continuing evolution of dis-
charge regulations, other impurities may
appear on future permits. Chloride and
bromide may be regulated in the future.
Other heavy metals may appear. For this
reason, some experts in the industry recom-
mend that new plant design include zero
liquid discharge (ZLD) treatment so that plant
personnel will not have to worry about future
regulations, whatever they may be. ZLD is not
an easy process and must be planned carefully. The next
section outlines an emerging technique that can play an
integral part in ZLD design.
Backend Discharge ReductionSeveral methods are possible to reduce the volume of
plant discharge, but I wish to focus on one technology, a
generic diagram of which is outlined below. Keys to the
process are:
• Micro- or ultrafiltration (UF) to remove suspended solids in
the waste stream.
• Sodium bisulfite (NaHSO3) feed to remove residual
oxidizing biocides.
• A sodium softener to remove calcium and magnesium.
• Sodium hydroxide injection to elevate the pH above 10.
(The combination of hardness removal and pH elevation
keeps silica in solution.)
• Two-pass reverse osmosis (RO) treatment to recover
90 percent of the water.
While the process appears straightforward, a number of
lessons-learned have emerged. These include:
• Some standard water treatment chemicals may foul MF or
UF membranes
- Most MF or UF membranes, and reverse osmosis mem-
branes for that matter, carry a slight negative charge.
Cationic polymers can be death to the membranes.
- The membrane manufacturer and type may greatly
influence this phenomenon
- Use of upstream multi-media filters to help remove
treatment chemicals may be completely ineffective.
• Use of poor quality backwash water for the UF mem-
branes may result in scaling of the effluent surface of
the membranes.
Even when the system outlined in Figure 1 operates
steadily, a waste stream still remains and must be disposed.
Potential solutions include:
• Deep well injection
• Evaporation pond(s)
• Thermal evaporation/crystallization
• Have the material transported off-site to a waste
disposal firm
All of these techniques require careful planning. Deep
well injection and evaporation ponds both require envi-
ronmental evaluations and the required permits before
implementation. Permission is often not granted. Deep well
injection has its own set of technical issues including the
need to pump the material at high pressure into the well(s)
and the possibility of scale formation within the well casing,
particularly as temperatures increase deeper underground.
Thermal evaporation/crystallization is a proven tech-
nology, but these systems typically require a significant
amount of energy, plus they can be labor and main-
tenance intensive. However, one design that has been
successfully applied in the salt production industry and at
other facilities employs crystallizers that operate under a
partial vacuum. The vacuum greatly lowers the distillation
temperature, thus reducing energy requirements and also
mitigating scale formation. I can provide contact details for
any interested readers.
Power plant personnel are facing tighter restrictions on waste
stream discharges and thus will have to plan accordingly.
Brad Buecker serves as a Process Specialist with Kiewit
Power Engineers in Lenexa, KS. He has over 33 years of
experience in or affiliated with the power industry, much of
it in chemistry, water treatment, air quality control, and re-
sults engineering positions with City Water, Light & Power
in Springfield, IL, and Kansas City Power & Light Com-
pany’s La Cygne, KS station. He has B.S. in chemistry from
Iowa State University, with additional course work in fluid
mechanics, material and energy balances, and advanced
inorganic chemistry. He has written many articles and
three books for PennWell Publishing on steam generation
topics. He is a member of the ACS, AIChE, ASME, CTI, and
NACE. He is also a member of the ASME Research Com-
mittee on Power Plant & Environmental Chemistry and
the program planning committee for the Electric Utility
Chemistry Workshop.
FIGURE 1: GENERIC OUTLINE OF AN EMERGING WASTEWATER TREATMENT TECHNOLOGY
CTBlowdown
UF or MF
NaHSO3
NaOH
High pHRO Unit
Reject toPond or
E/C
PermeateReturn toProcess
SodiumSoftener
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16 E L E C T R I C E N E R G Y | S U M M E R 2 0 1 4
n 1993, the City of Cody’s Municipal Electric Utility stood
at a crossroads. There was
considerable public criticism,
largely justified, due to frequent
outages. The system was aging
and the leadership team did not
have a clear picture of required
improvements. There were
public calls to sell the utility to the In-
vestor Owned Utility (IOU) that served
the areas surrounding the town.
A new Mayor was elected. He lis-
tened to the citizens’ concerns, spoke
with other municipalities and deter-
mined that a complete overhaul of the
city electric department was neces-
sary. He felt that the sale of the utility
to an IOU would cost the city control
of its rates and the ability to determine
what improvements would be made
and when. He also felt that portions of
the city that were currently served by
the IOU should be served by the city.
Later that year, the mayor hired
the city’s first electrical engineer to
head up the electric department. The
engineer determined that there were
numerous technical challenges facing
the utility. Three substations served
the city: two owned by the Western
Area Power Administration (WAPA)
and one owned by the city. One of the
WAPA substations was severely dated
and had limited capacity. The other
had recently been upgraded, but there
were challenges with the upgrade that
resulted in several extended outages.
The third substation, installed by the
city, was a padmounted, self-con-
tained unit that couldn’t be serviced
without taking it offline. There were
no adequate tie lines to allow load
transfer between substations, so
maintenance on the substation was
behind and could only be completed
if the loads it served were without
power for extended periods of time.
When it could be taken offline, the
other two substations could only
accommodate a portion of the load.
Even limiting additional load to the
two remaining substations challenged
the system. Seventy percent of the
distribution system was overhead and
30 percent was underground. The un-
derground lines had been installed in
BY BERT POND, ELECTRICAL ENGINEER, CITY OF CODY
UTILITY TRANSFORMATION
UTILIZING TOP-TO-BOTTOM
TEAMWORK
W W W . R M E L . O R G 17
the very early 1970s, were direct-bur-
ied and the majority of the transform-
ers on the system were overhead units
mounted in doghouses. This required
the primary connections to be live
front design, creating dangerous
conditions for personnel accessing
the units. The overhead systems were
more than 40 years old and in need
of rebuilding. Another problem facing
the system was that almost none of
the city’s distribution transformers
had been tested for PCBs and the city
was behind in meeting EPA require-
ments for the testing and cleaning of
its transformer inventory, both on the
system and in stock.
The engineer developed a plan to
upgrade the system involving trans-
former testing, initiation of voltage
conversion, substation upgrades
and the creation of computer-based
mapping for the entire distribution
system. The mayor and council were
extremely supportive of the plan and
authorized the
expenditure of
funds to com-
plete the work.
All transform-
ers were tested
within a three-
year period. The
PCB-contami-
nated transform-
ers were removed from the system
and properly disposed of by the end
of 1996. The city initiated a voltage
conversion project starting with those
areas served by the most recently up-
graded WAPA substation. The system
voltage was raised from 4.2Y/2.4 kV
to 12.5Y/7.2 kV. This area represented
approximately one-third of the city.
Numerous step-up transformers had
to be installed on the system to create
“pinch points” that limited the amount
of capacity available during substa-
tion load transfers. The next step
considered was the upgrade of the
oldest of the WAPA substations. It was
determined to be more cost-effective
for the city to replace the old WAPA
substation with a new one, owned by
the City of Cody. The city owned land
immediately adjacent to the oldest
substation; this allowed the city to
build a parallel substation with twice
the capacity, using up-to-date regula-
tion equipment and electronically
controlled reclosers with only a brief
outage during switchover. Instead of
one circuit, the new substation was
built with three. It was also designed
with a dual voltage secondary so that
the voltage conversion could ex-
tend to an additional third of the city.
This substation came online in 1996.
While this aided the capacity short-
age for the city’s system to a degree,
its substation was still too small and
could only serve at 4.2 kV. It was also
upgraded. To alleviate the inability
to back up the other substations,
this station’s capacity was more than
tripled. Finally, a new computer-based
mapping system was completed that
allowed easy map updates as well
as provided an accessible, detailed
system database.
The mayor who initiated the trans-
formation felt that the strong mayor/
council form of government was un-
able to provide the specialized exper-
tise necessary to develop a systematic
method of approaching infrastructure
upgrades and setting long-term goals,
not only for the electric system but
also for water, sanitary sewer, road-
ways, parks and recreation, and storm
sewers as well. He felt the city would
be best served by the city administra-
tor form of government, an idea he
brought to the public, who sup-
ported it. A new charter was approved,
PENDLEY SUBSTATION
SETTING THE NEW PENDLEY SUBSTATION TRANSFORMER
18 E L E C T R I C E N E R G Y | S U M M E R 2 0 1 4
adopting a city administrator
form of government in 1999. It
was through these efforts that
the city was able to purchase
and serve the remaining areas
of town still supplied by the
Investor-Owned Utility.
With support from the ad-
ministration and city council,
the electric division reversed
the mix of overhead versus
underground distribution so
that it now consists of 70
percent underground and
30 percent overhead facili-
ties. In addition, 60 percent
of the remaining overhead
lines were rebuilt and an aggressive
cable upgrade program is replacing
old underground lines with new lines
installed in conduit.
The fourth stage of the transforma-
tion was probably the most important:
the employment and use of well-qual-
ified lineworkers and their inclusion
in the early stages of new projects.
Rather than the engineer producing a
project design and passing it to opera-
tions to install, the engineer drafts ini-
tial plans and estimates for a project,
and then has operations review those
plans and suggest changes. This input
improves the installation phase as well
as addresses maintenance concerns
more easily recognized by people
in the field. Suggestions made by
operations personnel reduces outage
times when they occur, improves the
system’s reliability and dramatically
improves the public’s perception of
the city’s electric system.
The teamwork of the city’s govern-
ment, the administration, the engi-
neering and the operations branches
have led to a long list of changes and
improvements in the electric system.
These include:
1 The electric system is PCB-free.
2 The conversion of the distribu-
tion system from 4.2 kV to 12.5 kV
operation is nearly complete.
3 Ninety percent of the distribution
system is loop-fed.
4 Seventy percent of the system is
underground and thirty percent is
overhead.
5 Seventy percent of the city system
has been upgraded within the last
20 years.
6 All areas within the city limits are
served by the City of Cody Electric
System.
7 All substations can be tied to-
gether with load transfers, allowing
scheduled maintenance of the
substations.
8 To increase the lifespan of new
underground lines, the use of 25
kV cable placed in conduit for all
new additions and cable replace-
ment projects is required.
9 The city’s mapping system is Au-
toCAD-based and uses AutoDesk
Utility Design Software.
10 Nearly 95 percent of all distri-
bution transformers have been
replaced in the last 20 years,
partially by design but mainly as a
requirement of the system voltage
conversion.
11 System reliability for all causes
(scheduled and unscheduled out-
ages) has average 99.979 percent
over the last six years.
12 The city performs 98 percent of all
engineering and installation using
its own personnel.
13 The city’s streetlights (1,145 lights)
have been converted to LED, lead-
ing to a 60 percent reduction in
streetlight energy usage and a 70
percent reduction in streetlight
maintenance costs.
14 System upgrades are now well
planned and scheduled to fit
within the city’s budget.
15 The electric system is 100 percent
debt-free.
In summary, the entire city organi-
zation—the city government, the city
administration, engineering and op-
erations—has worked as a team, mak-
ing this city’s system work efficiently
and reliably. Without any one of these
team members, very little of the prog-
ress would have been possible.
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20 E L E C T R I C E N E R G Y | S U M M E R 2 0 1 4
NEW ROADWAYS, WIND FARMS, HIGH-VOLTAGE transmission and pipeline projects are all facing development
challenges at the federal, state and local levels. The hurdles
electric utilities face are parallel to those across energy indus-
tries. As projects continue to encounter these hurdles, social
approval of these projects is quickly becoming a deal-breaker.
Several industries are responding to this level of public par-
ticipation by setting new industry standards for communicat-
ing with stakeholders, landowners, communities, officials and
agencies. To meet this demand, smart industry leaders rely on
standardized public engagement approaches as critical to suc-
cess, not just of individual projects, but of the overall company
reputation and industry image.
INDUSTRY EVOLUTION. The National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) established a
federal process for environmental review of development proj-
ects, including public comment periods so the community could
have a voice. Comments are collected, reviewed, considered,
and sometimes included in revisions of the environmental review
documents. NEPA was the flagship of public engagement.
Fifty years ago, people had fewer opportunities to engage
in projects outside of attending public hearings and read-
ing mailed information. As our society has evolved to a wired
or now wireless community, technology has provided new
sources for information gathering and participation.
Electric utilities and the energy industry must reach beyond
simply meeting requirements and evolve to relate to stakehold-
ers of today’s society. Successful public engagement has the
ability to strengthen community relationships and reputations
for your project and company. However, if success is to be real-
ized, evolution must occur as an industry and not on individual
projects and stand alone companies. Now is the time for leaders
to develop best practices, review success stories from other
projects and develop a new standard for outreach industry wide.
COMMUNITY UNDERSTANDING. What is your reputation in the community? Have you had
a recent project stopped by public controversy? What do you
risk if you open up your process to public opinion? What do
you gain?
Stakeholders, from the boardroom to the union, are differ-
ent for every organization, in every region. Each stakeholder
group will have local and regional differences that make it
LEFT ENGAGING IMPACTED STAKEHOLDERS TO EDUCATE AND INFORM RIGHT PROVIDING FORUMS FOR MEANINGFUL PUBLIC DIALOGUE
Through Robust Public Involvement and Early Stakeholder Engagement
Building Relationships & Reputations
by Theresa McClure, HDR, Omaha, Strategic Communications & Public Involvement Manager; Emily Hyland, HDR, Minneapolis, Strategic Communications & Public Involvement Manager; Katie Hatfield Edstrom, Ph.D, HDR, Omaha, Strategic Communications & Public Involvement Senior Coordinator
W W W . R M E L . O R G 21
nearly impossible to apply a standardized outreach approach
for public engagement. Yet, certain processes apply, coast
to coast, industry to industry. It is imperative to define what
“stakeholder” means for your organization or project. Most
importantly, consider all of the people who may experience
quality of life changes in their community as a result of your
initiative. Understanding where your stakeholders are coming
from, and what might be important to them, will help frame
your project’s purpose and need and better position it for
public acceptance. Stakeholder analysis is the first step toward
determining the range of public engagement necessary to
encourage meaningful participation.
Beyond understanding the needs of the community, a
thorough issues analysis will help to uncover unknown or
unforeseen constraints, and often opportunities, that would
either explode or calm the public and political process on
your project. In the realm of infrastructure development,
stakeholders are bombarded with project after project, creat-
ing corridor and public meeting fatigue, and eliminating the
ability to get critical grassroots input.
While understanding com-
munity needs and issues is the
first step in a standard approach
for public engagement, it is all for
naught if a transparent process
is not in place to collect, discern
and incorporate meaningful infor-
mation into the decision-making
process. Today’s public demands
clarity, brevity and a voice. Most
importantly, in the age of the 24-
hour news cycle and the demand
to have current and accurate
information readily available on
the web, projects are inevitably
prone to public scrutiny. While
this might draw concern, opening your process to the public
can be an opportunity for community confidence building.
Every piece of information that can be made public should be
to clearly articulate, enforce and communicate back to your
stakeholders in an open and reciprocal process.
OUTREACH STRATEGY. A well-coordinated, inclusive and robust stakeholder en-
gagement process will help develop a project that is sustainable
and provides a framework for relationship building in any region.
Each project or organizational initiative will require a custom-
ized approach that best serves specific project and stakeholder
needs. Each strategy should be designed to carefully select
appropriate tools to collect, understand and incorporate stake-
holder input. The process starts with planning an effective out-
reach program that will help facilitate broad public involvement.
Understanding what makes each company and community
tick is the essence of developing an achievable approach that
allows active participation from all levels of the company and
community. Regardless of the region or community your proj-
ect will impact, a suite of print and web-based channels will
be needed to reach all stakeholders. This includes developing
unique and sometimes bold strategies that leverage standard
media outreach, social media and interactive web-based tools,
allowing the audience to view content at their convenience. It
is important to determine the right media and delivery chan-
nels to support communication goals.
Providing an opportunity for one-on-one interaction is also
important. While this type of interaction might be faced with
some trepidation, this intimate engagement can be accom-
plished by attending large public meetings or small grassroots
events and everything in between. Throughout the project
development process, you should be working to develop
relationships with your stakeholders in a way that proactively
advances public opinion toward consent, project support and
acceptance. Consider how you can include those who might
oppose your project and involve them in ways that educate
and potentially sway their views. Invitational dialogue can go
a long way to show commitment to
all stakeholders. It is the old art of
compromise. In the end, the project
will benefit from decisions that reflect
not only the sound technical require-
ments of the job, but also a partner-
ship with the community.
SUPPORT. An outreach strategy is only as
good as the team executing the plan.
Support from all levels of leadership
within your company and the project
team are required for the outreach
vision to be successful. Working
through internal speed bumps may
slow the full strategy integration program, however, even if
you allow time for several levels of company leadership to
approve the outreach strategy process, it will streamline the
outreach process when you are in the thick of the project.
MESSAGING, MONITORING. AND ADAPTING.
Ongoing and consistent messaging from the conception
of a project to the day the ribbon is cut brings added value to
a project. If every project team member is provided with key
messages and major project themes, they can accurately talk
to anyone about the project being proposed or constructed.
One of the top ways to lose trust with members of the
public is inconsistent messages and responses. For example,
if a landowner attends a public open house meeting and asks
a project representative about right of way easements and is
provided one answer and then asks another project represen-
tative about right of way easements and is given a different
INNOVATIVE USE OF MOBILE TECHNOLOGY TO INSPIRE PUBLIC PARTICIPATION
22 E L E C T R I C E N E R G Y | S U M M E R 2 0 1 4
answer, the landowner will be skeptical of all of the information provided at the open
house meetings. To help mitigate the problem of inconsistent messaging, media and
public meeting training is essential. The more comfortable project team members are
with their messages and talking points, the more likely their answers will be delivered.
Listening is even more important than messaging. You can be sure that with pages
of messaging developed for a project, there are bound to be questions or issues
that arise during the life of a project. A project team must employ avenues to listen,
track and respond to the conversation. Each stakeholder may not be involved in the
outreach process from start to finish and additional stakeholders may weave in and
out throughout the process. Tracking stakeholders’ participation, understanding their
issues and location within the project
area allows the project team to review
the outreach strategy and develop
messaging that addresses the stake-
holder’s concerns. Reviewing messag-
ing should be an ongoing component
of successful communication.
SOCIAL AND INTERACTIVE. MEDIA.
The free social tools available today
surpass anything companies were
using 10 or 15 years ago. Consider
how many times a day you search for
information on the internet. Do you
have a personal Twitter account? Are
you frequently on Facebook? If you are
using these tools to gather information,
don’t you think a stakeholder would be
interested in using these same tools to
hear about your company or upcom-
ing projects? A tweet about an upcom-
ing open house meeting is a quick and
easy communication avenue.
Social media should be used as a
form of two-way communication. If
the tools are only being used to push
information out, the social and com-
munity aspect are lost. Use social me-
dia such as Twitter, Facebook and You-
Tube, as a critical listening tool, where
you can manage, monitor and adapt
your message. If you aren’t listening,
you may miss a post from a project
supporter or be disengaged when an
opposition group forms against your
project. Listen and engage! It’s the
most valuable aspect of social media.
RETURN ON INVESTMENT. (ROI).
Understanding the true cost of an
open house meeting, newsletter mail-
ings and tweets can assist in select-
ing the most appropriate methods
of communication. Just as a project
tracks and adapts messages, a project
team must also understand the costs
associated with the outreach strategy
and modify tools and techniques if the
return is lower than expected. If the
data shows your tool has a low return,
go back to the drawing board, identify
a new approach and try it.
Ask stakeholders how they prefer
to be contacted. Review the analytics
Corporate Office 562.220.1450 www.total-western.comContact Ezra Jenkison or Ron Matson
For ore information about the pr ogram:John Pierce, [email protected]
800-933-7223 ext. 8394. If you are interested in hiring graduates:
Shelly Tolle, [email protected] ext. 8242
www.southeast.edu/EnergyGenerationOperations
What employers say about SCC’s program: “LES appreciates the foresight at SCC that drove investing the time and resources to bring the Energy Generation Operations program online. Having a local program that Nebraska utilities can help mold to fit their specific needs is a valuable resource that LES is proud to be a part of. The desire to source locally-educated and skilled operations staff for our generation facilities has been met by SCC with this program."
Brian McReynoldsGeneration OperationsLincoln Electric System
Southeast Community College in Nebraska offers an associate degree program designed to satisfy the need for entry-level operators at utility power plants, ethanol production facilities, wind farms, and other process-related industrial sites. The Energy Generation Operations program is taught face-to-face on SCC’s Milford, Neb., Campus. Some courses also are offered online.This program is intended to train workers to be operators at nuclear, fossil fuel, biofuels, wind, solar, and other types of energy generating facilities, including electrical and fluid fuel systems. SCC designed the program based on common core skills and competencies required by operators at all types of energy production facilities. The program enhances SCC’s Electronic Systems Technology (I&C) and Electrical & Electromechanical Technology programs, which have been supplying highly-qualified technicians and electricians to the utility industry for decades.
The program consists of five quarters of instruction in core competencies common to all types of energy generation operations. The final sixth quarter is our focus quarter in which students choose from Nuclear, Fossil Fuels, or Process Operations focuses. Because SCC works on the quarter system, students can achieve their two-year degree in 18 months. SCC collaborated with various service providers in developing the program, including the Nebraska Public Power District, Omaha Public Power District, Black Hills Energy, Lincoln Electric System, the Nebraska Ethanol Board, American Wind Energy Association, and the Nebraska Wind Working Group.
Energy Generation Operations program trains entry-level operators
24 E L E C T R I C E N E R G Y | S U M M E R 2 0 1 4
of how they currently receive project information to understand the effectiveness and
efficiency of your communication tools. Stakeholders may prefer electronic forms of
communication instead of hard copy mail. People have busy lives and may not make it a
priority to attend a public meeting. Using online tools or social media forums to create a
community conversation may create a better venue for project discussion.
MOVING FORWARD. While the practice of involving the public and other interested groups in a proj-
ect’s early stages is nothing new, the level of stakeholder influence and engagement
has never been higher. This trend will continue upward as infrastructure budgets
shrink and the problems we, as
industry leaders, work to solve
become more and more complex.
Additionally, regulatory require-
ments will continue to impact
our projects. As a result, leaders
in the electric energy industry
must move beyond the require-
ments set by federal, state and
local standards. They must look
for ways to engage a community
in an authentic way. Industry lead-
ers must set new standards for
engagement to blaze a path for
productive project implementation
and industry progress.
Recently Minnesota’s Great
Northern Transmission Line project
was lauded by the Obama adminis-
tration as a “leading example in 21st
century infrastructure” projects.
The project engaged stakehold-
ers over the course of two years
at more than 75 public meetings,
utilized online engagement tools,
and found ways to meaningfully
engage landowners, tribes, agen-
cies, politicians, and other inter-
ested stakeholder groups.
This trend of robust engage-
ment is on the rise. Various
electric utilities are investing in
communities by giving staff op-
portunities to step outside the
office and build real relationships
with the surrounding communi-
ties. Think about the opportuni-
ties available for your company
to make a difference in the lives
of the people in the commu-
nity in which you work and live.
What small or large changes can
your company or project team
make that may create a lasting
impression of your company on
a particular community? The first
step is to create opportunities for
people to have their voices heard.
If your engagement program suc-
cessfully gives your stakeholders
a voice, be sure to listen. And be
true to your engagement pro-
gram, as it will allow you to adapt
and build relationships.
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26 E L E C T R I C E N E R G Y | S U M M E R 2 0 1 4
BY JIM WALTERS, EdD, OWNER, POWER OF LEARNING, INC.
A MATTEROF HABIT
Changing Leadership Styles:
W W W . R M E L . O R G 27
Last summer’s edition included my article, “Leading for Safer and More Civil Environments,”
which generated interest in how to change leader-
ship style, and specifically how to change from a
leadership style that relies primarily on positional
power to a style that embraces trust and relationship as a
means of influence. This article is devoted to helping those
interested in changing their leadership style to more ef-
fectively lead today’s more knowledgeable, demanding and
empowered workforce.
Leadership is about the ability to influence others. During
the Industrial Revolution, leaders influenced subordinates
in the same way they managed machines: with basic care.
They made sure that gears were well oiled so machines
would work at the push of a button; workers were provided
paychecks so operations would run just as smoothly when
bosses told them what to do.
A shift from the boss-centered leadership style began as
far back as the ’70s with the realization that leading people
was far different from managing machines. As workforces
became more informed and better educated, treating them
like machines didn’t work; a subordinate-centered leader-
ship style was soon ushered in. Indeed, humans are not
machines; they are living systems with feelings, goals and,
perhaps most importantly, a fundamental desire to choose.
This means that leading in the 21st century requires leaders
who demonstrate respect for workers by nudging more than
pushing behavioral change.
Effective leaders in the 21st century understand the dif-
ference between managing and leading and the need for
adopting a more humanist approach in their leadership prac-
tice. As shown in Table 1—Industrial/Information Age Leader-
ship, boss-centered leadership style fuels us/them interac-
tions and virtually eliminates opportunities for trust-building.
Without the opportunity to build trust, leaders’ ability to
influence is significantly eroded. Contrarily, subordinate-
centered leadership is founded on relationships that include
workers as much as possible in decisions that affect them—
subordinates are nudged rather than pushed.
You should be concerned about developing your leader-
ship practice for several reasons, not the least of which is
worker incivility and its impact
on safety. Statistics from the
May 2013 Security Director’s
Report from the Institute of
Finance and Management,
How Will You Stem the Tide
of Workplace Incivility (and
Worse)?, incivility has increased
by 33 percent for utilities and
the construction and mining
industries as a group. These,
and other related statistics,
underscore the need for continued
development to change leadership
style to a more people-centered
leadership practice.
Subordinate-centered leadership
shifts power from the traditional “by
position,” where, like the military,
as one ascends the hierarchy, more
information is entrusted to him/
her. Yet positional power today is
less effective since information is
ubiquitous. These two forces alone
beg the question:
How do I lead an informed and
more intelligent workforce?
Before delving into this question, it is important to un-
derstand I am not suggesting a subordinate-centered style
in all situations—nothing in life is absolute. I am suggesting
leaders learn subordinate-centered leadership and practice
nudging first and pushing second.
Observing those by whom we are led typically forms
leadership habits. To be sure, leadership style has deep roots
and is difficult to change. The difficulty lies in the lack of
personal preparation for changing habits. With the help of
author Charles Duhigg (The Power of Habit), here are some
strategies for personal preparation toward changing leader-
ship habits/style and the process of changing habits.
STRENGTHEN EMOTIONAL INTELLIGENCEChanging a habit requires willpower and strengthening
one’s emotional intelligence can help. Emotional intelligence
(EQ) relates to how leaders manage their behavior and rela-
tionships with others. In EQ parlance, the former is referred to
as personal competencies (e.g., self-awareness), and the latter
as social competencies (e.g., ability to empathize). As shown
in Figure 1, body behaviors are motivated by signals from the
external environment and body sensory sources. The signals
travel cell to cell on their way to the neocortex, which is the
home of logical thinking. This means we experience emo-
tions first and thinking second and further explains without
management of emotions, we are prone to primal outbursts,
Management connotes control; manager refers to a position in an organization, controls what subordinates do.
Leadership connotes influ-ence; leader refers to influenc-ing others, not position; ability influence (lead) is associated with potentially any worker.
TABLE 1: INDUSTRIAL/INFORMATION AGE LEADERSHIP
Industrial Age—20th Century Boss-centered—Push
Information Age—21st Century Subordinate-centered—Nudge
Information = Power = I have it Information = Power = Everybody has it
Feelings are not important Humans have an innate sense of justice
Centralized control Autonomy with accountability
Adversarial relationships Cooperative relationships
Autocratic decision-making Shared decision-making
CEO or boss is “king” Customer* is “king”
* Remember internal customers.
Changing Leadership Styles:
28 E L E C T R I C E N E R G Y | S U M M E R 2 0 1 4
demonstrating poor so-
cial skills and an inability
to empathize and accept
criticism. How, then, can
habits change if we are
not aware of our
true selves?
From a leadership per-
spective, knowing yourself
spurs authentic relation-
ships and confidence, that
are vital tenets of effective
leadership.
What is more, self-
awareness transcends
organizational position, e.g., Director, because people at all
levels of the organization have an innate ability to influence
others. You may be wondering how can someone who does
not know what upper management knows influence others
so effectively? Here’s a hint—you can be gifted with ability to
think logically and the capacity for abstract thought, (IQ),
but are of little use if you cannot relate what you think and
know to others effectively (EQ).
Researchers like Daniel Goleman, author of Working
with Emotional Intelligence, and Daniel Goleman, Richard
Boyatzis and Annie McKee, co-authors of Primal Leadership:
Learning to Lead with Emotional Intelligence, have dem-
onstrated repeatedly that people with high IQ, often do not
outperform colleagues with lower IQ. Indeed, as IQ rises, the
ability to relate to others’ emotions (EQ) declines, resulting
in decreased leadership effectiveness. Leading in the power
industry is as much about technical ability (IQ)—demonstrat-
ing the ability to build a power line—as it is about behavioral
ability (EQ)—the ability to build trust with crew members. It is
a human performance issue that requires emotionally intel-
ligent leaders.
Bottom line: Read how others perceive you by honing
your personal and social competencies in order to close
the gap between who you are publically and who you are
privately. Closing this gap removes or least diminishes the
communication noise that disrupts sense making. If success-
ful, others will more accurately perceive you as an authentic
person, which is another key trait of effective leadership.
TOWARD-SUCCESS AND AWAY-FROM-FAILURE THINKING
What is it that enables some people to achieve so much?
It is due in part to their tendency to think toward success in-
stead of away from failure. Toward-success thinkers are the
same people who are highly satisfied with life and motivated
to achieve. Those who think towards success understand the
power of the unconscious mind. The power rests in the fact
that the subconscious cannot differentiate between what is
imagined and what is real.
What we tell our mind has
a very powerful effect on
behavior, i.e., our ability to
change habits.
The subconscious is also
unable to recognize a nega-
tive. Consider this request:
Do not think about kanga-
roos. I know—you instantly
thought of a kangaroo.
Maybe you visualized a
kangaroo’s unique eyes, or
maybe you thought about a
Kangaroo’s cousin the Wal-
laby. But I asked you to NOT think about a kangaroo.
Towards success thinking and not recognizing a negative
be used to help us manage our thinking and reward us with
an enriched life.
With reference to Figure 2, trying to lose weight by think-
ing about foods to avoid, e.g., ice cream, deep-fried chicken,
etc. programs the mind to get what it has been programmed
to do—seek fatty foods. In like fashion, thinking about bossy
and self-centeredness actually programs one’s behavior to
be bossy and self-centered.
Allowing one’s subconscious to continually think in terms
of avoiding problems can produce three unhealthy outcomes:
1. When the problem goes away, one is left with no goal.
For example, I don’t want to live in a mobile home. Once I
can afford a stick-built home, I am left with no goal and am
unmotivated until I am left with no home again.
2. Thinking away from failure is automatic for humans
and easily becomes habitual, and works to keep us in a cycle
of fearing the future and thinking of past negative memories.
3. Away-from-failure thinking is akin to eliminating prob-
lems in one’s life in hopes of finding what is wanted. The
problem is, if success were available, the mind would not
sense it because it has been programmed to see failure.
LET TOWARD-SUCCESS DOMINATE YOUR THINKING, ESPECIALLY REGARDING LIFE GOALS
Toward-success thinking is powerful, but not mysterious.
I can’t believe it: Ever since I bought this Volkswagen
Jetta, I see them all over the road!
The brain is very good at pattern-matching, even to a
fault. In 1942, soldiers stationed on the beaches around Los
Angeles fired antiaircraft guns because they thought they
saw enemy planes. Knowing the country was at war, the
mind was alert to war and the soldiers saw Japanese fighter
planes in the sky that did not exist. In the same way, buying
the Volkswagen Jetta alerted the mind to a new pattern—
Volkswagen Jettas. So why not use this power for aligning
one’s life to what is wanted? Doing so programs the mind
LimbicSystem
Neocortex
Brainstem
Spinal Cord
Home ofReasoning
Home ofFeelings
Signalsenter here
FIGURE 1: BODY SIGNALS
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30 E L E C T R I C E N E R G Y | S U M M E R 2 0 1 4
to think as if you already have
it, thus providing the motivation
to change your habits. Again,
with reference to Figure 2, a
toward-success statement such
as “I can’t wait for the feeling I
am going to get when others
comment about my leadership”
programs the mind to achieve
what it is programmed to do—
receive comments regarding
your newfound leadership style.
Bottom line: Program your
mind to change a habit by
writing a toward-success statement on a piece of paper
that describes your future state. Make it powerful by using
verbs—and keep it short.
VISUALIZATION FOR CRUCIAL CONVERSATIONS
Changing habits inevitably involves having crucial con-
versations. Imagine subordinates trying to make sense of
changes in your leadership style; some will embrace the
change while others will resist. One of the most power-
ful ways to manage these types of situations was taught to
me by Dr. Charles Reinert at Southwest Minnesota State
University in 1986. As a journeyman lineman working on my
bachelor degree, I found myself lying on the floor with other
students with lights out and Kitaro music playing softly, all
this while Dr. Reinert taught biology by having us visualize
key topics of the class. I became a believer and have since
used visualization, also referred to as “image streaming,”
in anticipation of having crucial conversations. Try it for
yourself: Find a quiet room, play some Kitaro (if you are not
familiar with Kitaro, you will thank me for the introduction)
and visualize yourself engaging with the other person: what
you say, his/her reactions and how the meeting ends.
Bottom line: My Leading with Both Brains for Safety’s
Sake workshop introduces the concept of performing a pre-
mortem analysis as a means to proactively unearth potential
incidents. In the same sense, think of the crucial conversa-
tions you will have and prepare yourself for them by visual-
izing how they actually play out.
EMBRACE FOLLOWERSHIPImplicit in Ralph Nader’s quote, “The function of leader-
ship is to produce more leaders, not more followers,” is a
focus on worker development more than seeing workers
strictly as entities who work. Followers are no longer passive
entities; they are complex and intelligent beings that have
a high-level need for acceptance. Attempting to change a
professional habit without a solid understanding of why or
whom the change will affect is
a recipe for failure.
Authors James Kouzes and
Barry Posner in Credibility: How
Leaders Gain and Lose It, Why
People Demand It underscore
the importance of subordinate-
centered leadership. The
authors’ research listed honesty,
forward-looking, inspiring and
competency as the top four
things workers wanted from
their leaders. Most important to
our discussion of subordinate-
centered leadership style were the things the workers cited
least often: unyielding ambition and fierce independence.
The top and bottom of the list are polar opposites and speak
loudly. If a leader is too ambitious, he/she may run over fol-
lowers and, contrarily, if a leader is too independent, he/she
may not care to connect with followers.
Bottom line: Think process over product. Make sure to
understand what drives your followers, how they react, how
they can help you and how you can help them.
LEARN TO CHANGE HABITSPreparing one’s mind by enacting all or at least some
of the preparation strategies described will provide a solid
foundation for embarking on habit change. In my consult-
ing work, I am always surprised to find leaders who attempt
to change habits associated with customer service attitudes
or lineman attention to safety with one-day workshops on
attitudes of outstanding customer service representatives or
how to work safely as a lineman. These approaches are inef-
fective because they address a human performance issue, a
habit, with a stepwise technical solution.
Habits are behaviors that are repeated and ultimately
become part of the subconscious; the behavior is hardwired
into the brain. Hardwiring is the mind’s way of budgeting the
conscious mind by placing repeated behaviors in long-term
memory. Since hardwiring exists for any given behavior, it
doesn’t take much mind-energy to do it.
When behaviors are hardwired, it takes significant cogni-
tive effort to break the cycle. Author Charles Duhigg (The
Power of Habit) provides a wonderful model that determines
the motivator for the habit (Cue), the behavior(s) engaged in
(Routine) and the benefit received (Reward). Once the com-
ponents of the habit loop are identified, one can work sys-
tematically to change the habit. For example, John wants to
know why he gets a knot in his stomach often when meeting
with his team. After all, on several occasions, he saves the
day by making the decision for the team. Cues could be
team members’ body language conveying distrust, meetings
FIGURE 2: TOWARD AND AWAY THINKING
TOWARD:SUCCESS
“I am going to look great after I change my diet
and exercise more.”
“I can’t wait for the feeling I am
going to get when others comment
about my leadership.”
AWAY:FAILURE
“I need to avoid these foods
in order to be slimmer.”
“I need to be less directive, bossy,
and self-centered in order to gain the respect of
others”
W W W . R M E L . O R G 31
that are held on Fridays at 3pm that impinge on week-
end time and/or John’s suffering emotional state due
to recent problems at home. Routines could include
John going to the cafeteria and getting a large soda
often, which has resulted in weight gain. The Reward
could include John deriving the pleasure of a sugary
drink. With this information, John can narrow down the
reward that is responsible for his habit loop. Maybe it’s
the energy rush from the soda; maybe it’s the solitude
associated with the walk to the cafeteria, etc. As you
test various rewards, jot down the first three things
that come to mind when you get back to your office.
They can be emotions, random thoughts or anything
that comes to mind.
Then, set an alarm for
15 minutes; when the
alarm sounds, deter-
mine if the urge to go
to the cafeteria still
exists. If so, the habit is
not motivated by the soda
(Duhigg, p. 279). Once the reward
is linked to the routine and the cues are understood,
it is a matter of changing the reward. In John’s case,
it was the conversations he had with colleagues while
walking to the soda machine that he craved. Armed
with this information, he changed his habit from drink-
ing soda to taking social breaks with colleagues.
The challenge of changing leadership style is difficult
because behaviors associated with habits are deeply
ingrained. Overcoming the inertia of ingrained think-
ing requires high-level thinking, an important first step
in changing habits. Tactics such as visualization and
toward-success versus away-from-failure thinking were
presented as effective means to position the mind to
more readily determine and accept change. A well-pre-
pared mind more readily identifies the Cues/Routines/
Rewards of habit loops to confidently take action and
change leadership style.
Jim Walters, EdD, is a former electric lineman and
current owner of Power of Learning, Inc. He provides
employee development services in the areas of safety,
customer service and interpersonal communication,
especially for utilities. More than 1,000 people have
attended his workshops “Get to Know Your Brain for
Safety’s Sake” and “Leading with Both Brains for Safety’s
Sake.” He received an MBA from the University of
Dubuque and graduated from Saint Mary’s University of
Minnesota with a Doctorate of Education in leadership.
Reach him at [email protected] or http://pow-
eroflearning.org or 507-990-8110.
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Not long ago, managers of our nation’s electric utilities had a pretty reliable indicator at their disposal whenever they needed to project future demand for power in their service territories. All they had to do was look at economic growth. Traditionally, growth in total electricity sales and real GDP were highly corre-lated, expanding and contracting in similar fashion.
In recent years, however, that longtime rule of thumb has not applied. Sometime around 2010, U.S. electricity consump-tion “decoupled” from the pace of overall economic activity, falling almost 1 percent, even despite average GDP growth of 2.2 percent over the same period. It’s not certain whether this break represents a transitory or a permanent shift. However, the evidence suggests that decoupling may well prove to be per-manent due to changing customer preferences, rapid advance-ments in energy efficiency and distributed generation technology.
The implications for power provid-
ers, including rural electric coop-
eratives, are significant. Utility-style
business models built around steady,
predictable growth will need to evolve
if we really are moving into a new
era of static, or even falling, electric-
ity demand. Regulatory frameworks
will also have to adjust. Fortunately,
RECs continue to enjoy many inherent
advantages that should help them
adapt effectively to the challenges of
the future.
ELECTRICITY DEMAND: BY THE NUMBERS
The downtrend in total electric-
ity sales that began in 2008 has been
driven by a significant decline in sales
to the industrial sector, combined
with flat sales to commercial and
residential customers. The only year
with positive growth across all three
sectors was 2010, when the economy
began to emerge from the Great Re-
cession. (See Exhibit 1.)
In the industrial sector, which
includes the manufacturing, agricul-
ture, forestry, fishing, construction
and mining industries, share of total
electricity consumption fell from 35
percent in 1990 to 26 percent in 2013.
Industrial electricity sales shed 10
percent during the sharp economic
downturn in 2008-09 and still con-
tinue to languish. In 2013, sales stood
6 percent below the cyclical peak
reached in 2007.
The residential sector accounted
for about 37 percent of total electric-
ity sales in 2013, the same percentage
accounted for in 2007. Housing square
footage is the main driver of long-term
electricity demand across the sector,
with space cooling being the single
largest end use for electricity.
The U.S. commercial building
sector accounted for approximately
36 percent of total electricity sales in
2013, a slight increase from 35 percent
in 2007. Commercial buildings include
stores, offices, schools, warehouses,
factories, restaurants, churches, gym-
nasiums, libraries, museums, hospitals,
U.S. ELECTRICITYSALES:
DECOUPLEDFROM GROWTH?By Paul Narduzzo, Sr. VP Electric Distribution, CoBank and Taylor Gunn, Economist, CoBank
W W W . R M E L . O R G 33
clinics and jails. The vast majority of
electricity consumed by the commer-
cial sector is used for lighting, space
cooling and ventilation.
Going forward, the U.S. industrial
sector may be poised for a strong
comeback while the residential and
commercial sectors face continued
stagnation or possible net reductions
in energy usage, generally as a result
of increased efficiencies. Recent stud-
ies suggest that the fastest-growing
industrial segments in the United
States over the next few years will be
those that are energy-intensive and
heavily dependent on natural gas.
However, whether or not the prospec-
tive growth in these energy-intensive
industries will be sufficient to put the
total industrial sector’s consumption
of electricity on an upward trajectory
remains to be seen.
CHANGING CORRELATION WITH GDP
Based on historic data spanning
1990 to 2010, the year-over-year
growth rates in real GDP and electricity
sales generally moved in tandem. More
precisely, the correlation coefficient
between the two series measured plus
0.65. (See Exhibit 2.) This all changed
after 2010. Since that year, real GDP
has grown about 2 percent a year,
while total U.S. electricity sales have re-
mained weak. From 2011 through 2013,
the correlation coefficient between
these two series was minus 0.99.
The partial decoupling of growth
in electricity sales from GDP growth
coincides with accelerated adoption
rates of energy efficiency across all
end-use sectors. Ratepayer-funded
energy-efficiency programs in the
United States have expanded, and
the number of states with energy-
resource standards rose from eight in
2006 to 24 in 2012.
Energy efficiency will likely continue
to erode the relationship between
growth in electricity sales and GDP
growth. Furthermore, technology that
enables customers to control how they
consume and generate their energy is
quickly evolving. Distributed generation
(DG) stole the show across the entire
electric utility industry in 2013, and
many industry analysts feel that last
year was merely the opening act.
EMERGING TRENDSFueled by federal and state incen-
tives and declining costs, DG will
continue to gain market share. Solar
is the leading DG technology today,
but natural gas has the potential to
become another primary fuel for DG.
There are 37 million homes in the
United States served by individual
natural gas lines. Greater expansion
of distributed micro-turbines, fuel
cells, reciprocating engines and other
devices will use natural gas at the local
level to provide multiple services.
Rooftop solar technology has
emerged as one of the leading threats
to the central generating station busi-
ness model. With each passing year,
this technology becomes increasingly
affordable and economically attrac-
tive. According to Bloomberg’s New
Energy Finance, solar panel prices
have dropped 77 percent since 2008
and currently cost $0.86 per watt.
The steep decline in solar panel
prices has been driven by the plunge
in the price of polysilicon, and by
Chinese manufacturers’ dumping of
cheap panels all over the world. The
U.S. federal government is consider-
ing trade measures against China
that could result in a 20 percent rise
in the cost of solar panels, by some
estimates. However, over the long run,
solar panel prices are likely to remain
very competitive due to a globally
competitive solar market and rapidly
improving manufacturing processes
for solar panels, particularly among
Chinese manufacturers.
Falling solar panel prices are one of
the main drivers of growth in DG, which
represents about 40 percent of the total
solar market and is the fastest-growing
segment of the market. The Solar En-
ergy Industries Association (SEIA) fore-
casts DG solar capacity to reach 5,000
MW in 2016, surpassing that of utility-
scale solar capacity. Moreover, recent
breakthroughs in battery-storage tech-
nology promise to greatly improve the
economics of DG for users. A number
of companies are reportedly on the
verge of commercializing some very
cost-effective battery technologies that
could revolutionize the use of DG. The
cost of battery storage has come down
much faster than industry analysts had
projected, suggesting that battery stor-
age could compete with natural gas,
even in a low gas price environment, as
early as mid-2015.
EXHIBIT 1: ELECTRICITY SALES BY END-USE SECTORSource: U.S. Energy Information Administration
0
200000
400000
600000
800000
1000000
1200000
1400000
1600000
199
0
199
1
199
2
199
3
199
4
199
5
199
6
199
7
199
8
199
9
20
00
20
01
20
02
20
03
20
04
20
05
20
06
20
07
20
08
20
09
20
10
20
11
20
12
20
13
GIG
AW
AT
T-H
OU
RS
Residential Commercial Industrial
COMPOUNDED ANNUAL GROWTH RATES
1990-2000 2000-2011 2011-2013Residential 2.43% 1.76% -1.12%Commercial 3.41% 2.16% -0.66%Industrial 1.21% 0.39% -1.86%
Total Sales 2.28% 0.89% -0.78%
34 E L E C T R I C E N E R G Y | S U M M E R 2 0 1 4
BUSINESS MODEL IMPLICATIONS
Flat load growth, greater energy
efficiency and advances in DG tech-
nology are propelling the evolution of
the traditional utility business model.
Electric utilities will probably see more
change over the next 10 years than they
did over the previous 100 years. This is
certainly not about the end of utilities,
but rather a tough transition with many
uncertainties. Regulators will continue
to play a major role during this transition
to ensure that the nation’s electric sys-
tem is maintained in a reliable, efficient
and cost-effective way.
Market participants must adapt to
the current low-growth environment.
Over the short term, they will likely do
so by increasing the deal flow involv-
ing unregulated assets that generate
strong yields along with mergers and
acquisitions on the regulated side.
Through the end of this decade, utili-
ties will also be forced to make lasting
changes to their business models as
average electricity demand growth
remains below historic norms and
customers exploit technologies that
afford them more control over their
energy use. Utilities’ mission will likely
broaden from selling electricity to de-
livering a number of energy services.
Many of these energy services will
be tied to technological advance-
ments, which will offer customers
greater control over the generation
and use of their energy. Over the next
three to five years, electric utilities will
have fewer captive customers, so their
business models will need to evolve
and become more customer-centric.
As the utility-customer relationship
becomes more dynamic, utilities
can leverage their position to own
and operate DG systems, manage a
smart grid or offer in-home energy
management tools. These services go
beyond simply delivering electricity,
and provide customers greater control
over their energy use without having
to shoulder any of the burdens.
To aid in this transition, regulators
must allow utilities to compete with the
entrepreneurs and various providers of
disruptive technologies that are being
sold to consumers. Utilities and regula-
tors will have to work together to rethink
how utilities’ costs can be recovered
to make them financially whole while
maximizing the benefits consumers
receive from using new technologies.
At the same time, technology could
possibly create new opportunities for
increased electricity demand among
each end-use sector. For example,
expansion of the U.S. manufactur-
ing base holds significant potential to
transform the industrial sector’s elec-
tricity consumption habits. Increased
proliferation of small electrical devices
coupled with the transmission of mas-
sive amounts of data could provide
a jolt to residential and commercial
electricity sales. Accelerated adoption
rates of electric cars could drastically
shift energy consumption within the
transportation sector away from fossil
fuels and toward electricity. So while
we appear from today’s vantage point
to be entering a prolonged period of
static power demand, the future may
well surprise us.
MEETING THE CHALLENGE AND THE COOPERATIVE ADVANTAGE
The transition of the electric utility
industry over the next few years will
be rocky as both providers and regula-
tors try to keep pace with market
changes. However, the nation’s rural
electric cooperatives will also have a
number of significant advantages to
draw on that will be invaluable as their
boards and management teams work
together to meet these challenges.
One will be the cooperative model
itself, which creates strong, enduring
alignment between the cooperative
and the needs of its membership. An-
other will be the committed financial
support of lenders like CoBank, whose
mission is to serve the rural electric
industry and other vital sectors of the
rural economy. Yet another will be the
credible voice that electric coopera-
tives have developed in Washington
and in state capitals through the ef-
fective work of NRECA and statewide
organizations like Colorado Rural
Electric Association.
All of these factors will serve as
stabilizing forces for RECs in a future
of increased uncertainty. And they will
help ensure that cooperatives adapt
effectively, remain operationally and
financially sound, and continue to fulfill
the needs of the members and com-
munities they serve in years ahead.
EXHIBIT 2: YOY % GROWTH IN REAL GDP AND ELECTRICITY SALESSource: U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis and U.S. Energy Information Administration
-5%
-4%
-3%
-2%
-1%
0%
1%
2%
3%
4%
5%
2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013
YoY% Growth Total Electricity Sales YoY% Growth Real GDP
From 1990 to 2011, YoY growth in real GDP
and electricity sales were positively
correlated by +0.65.
From 2011 to 2013, YoY growth in real GDP
and electricity sales were negatively
correlated by -0.99.
+ –
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36 E L E C T R I C E N E R G Y | S U M M E R 2 0 1 4
MEMBER LISTINGS
1 ABB, Inc.
2 ABCO Industrial Sales, Inc.
3 ADA-ES, Inc.
4 Advanced Motor Controls
5 Alexander Publications
6 Altec Industries, Inc.
7 AMEC
8 American Coal Council
9 American Trainco Inc.
10 Arizona Electric Power Cooperative, Inc.
11 Arizona Public Service
12 Arkansas River Power Authority
13 Asplundh Tree Expert Co.
14 Associated Electric Cooperative, Inc.
15 ATCO Emissions Management
16 Austin Energy
17 AZCO INC.
18 Babcock & Wilcox Company
19 Babcock Power, Inc.
20 Basin Electric Power Cooperative
21 Beckwith Electric
22 Beta Engineering
23 Black & Veatch Corp.
24 Black Hills Corporation
25 Black Hills Electric Cooperative
26 Boilermakers Local #101
27 Boone Electric Cooperative
28 Border States Electric
29 Bowman Consulting Group
30 Brooks Manufacturing Company
31 Burns & McDonnell
32 Butler Public Power District
33 C.I.Agent Solutions
34 Carbon Power & Light, Inc.
35 Casey Industrial, Inc.
36 CB&I
37 CBS Arc Safe
38 CDG Engineers, Inc.
39 Center Electric Light & Power System
40 CH2M HILL
41 Chimney Rock Public Power District
42 City of Alliance Electric Department
43 City of Aztec Electric Department
44 City of Cody
45 City of Farmington
46 City of Fountain
47 City of Gillette
48 City of Glenwood Springs
49 City of Imperial
50 City of Yuma
51 Co-Mo Electric Cooperative
52 CoBank
53 Colorado Energy Management, LLC
54 Colorado Highlands Wind LLC
55 Colorado Powerline, Inc.
56 Colorado Rural Electric Association
57 Colorado School of Mines
58 Colorado Springs Utilities
59 Colorado State University
60 Commonwealth Associates, Inc.
61 ComRent
62 The Confluence Group Inc.
63 Continental Divide Electric Cooperative
64 Cooling Tower Depot
65 Corporate Risk Solutions, Inc.
66 CPS Energy
67 D.C. Langley Energy Consulting, LLC
68 Delta Montrose Electric Assn.
69 DIS-TRAN Packaged Substations, LLC
70 Dowdy Recruiting LLC
71 E & T Equipment, LLC
72 E3 Consulting
73 El Paso Electric Company
74 Electrical Consultants, Inc.
75 Electrical Reliability Services
76 Emerson Process Management
77 The Empire District Electric Company
78 Empire Electric Association, Inc.
79 Encompass Energy Services LLC
80 Energy & Resource Consulting Group, LLC
81 Energy Reps
82 Enovation Partners
83 Equal Electric, Inc.
84 ESC engineering
85 Estes Park Light & Power Dept.
86 Exponential Engineering Company
87 Finley Engineering Company, Inc.
88 Foothills Energy Services Inc.
89 Fort Collins Utilities
90 Foster Wheeler
91 Fuel Tech, Inc.
92 Gallup Joint Utilities
93 GE Power & Water
94 Golder Associates, Inc.
95 Grand Island Utilities
96 Grand Valley Rural Power Lines, Inc.
97 Great Southwestern Construction, Inc.
98 Greer CPW
99 Gunnison County Electric Association, Inc.
100 Hamilton Associates, Inc.
101 Hamon Research - Cottrell
102 Harris Group, Inc.
103 Hartigan Power Equipment Company
104 HDR, Inc.
105 High Energy Inc. (HEI)
106 Highline Electric Assn.
107 Holy Cross Energy
108 Howard Electric Cooperative
109 Hubbell Power Systems
110 Hughes Brothers, Inc.
111 IBEW, Local Union 111
112 IEC Rocky Mountain
113 IMCORP
114 Incorporated County of Los Alamos Department of Public Utilities
115 Independence Power & Light
116 Integrity Consulting Services
117 Intercounty Electric Coop Association
118 Intermountain Rural Electric Assn.
119 Irby
120 Irwin Industries, Inc.- Power Plant Services
121 J.L. Hermon & Associates, Inc.
122 Johnson Matthey Stationary Emission Control
123 Kansas City Board of Public Utilities
124 Kansas City Power & Light
125 KBR
126 KD Johnson, Inc.
127 Kiewit
128 Kirk Erectors, Inc.
129 Kit Carson Electric Cooperative
130 Kleinfelder
131 Klondyke Construction LLC
132 La Junta Municipal Utilities
133 La Plata Electric Association, Inc.
134 Lake Region Electric Coop Inc.
135 Lamar Utilities Board
136 Laminated Wood Systems, Inc.
137 Las Animas Municipal Light & Power
138 Lauren Engineers & Constructors
139 Leidos
140 Lewis Associates, Inc.
141 Lincoln Electric System
142 Llewellyn Consulting
143 Longmont Power and Communications
144 The Louis Berger Group
RMEL Member Companies
38 E L E C T R I C E N E R G Y | S U M M E R 2 0 1 4
MEMBER LISTINGS
145 Loup River Public Power District
146 Loveland Water & Power
147 Luminate, LLC
148 Magna IV Engineering Inc.
149 Marsulex Environmental Technologies
150 Missouri River Energy Services
151 Mitsubishi Hitachi Power Systems Americas, Inc.
152 Morgan County Rural Electric Assn.
153 Mountain Parks Electric, Inc.
154 Mountain States Utility Sales
155 Mountain View Electric Assn.
156 Mycoff, Fry & Prouse LLC
157 NAES Corp.
158 Navopache Electric Cooperative, Inc.
159 Nebraska Public Power District
160 NEI Electric Power Engineering, Inc.
161 New Mexico State University
162 Nol-Tec Systems, Inc.
163 Nooter/Eriksen, Inc.
164 Norris Public Power District
165 Northeast Community College
166 Northwest Rural Public Power District
167 Novinda Corporation
168 NRG Reliability Solutions LLC
169 NV Energy
170 Omaha Public Power District
171 Omnicon Technical Sales
172 Osmose Utilities Services, Inc.
173 Otero County Electric Cooperative
174 PacifiCorp
175 Panhandle Rural Electric Membership Assn.
176 PAR Electrical Contractors, Inc.
177 Peterson Co.
178 Pike Electric, LLC
179 Pine Valley Power, Inc.
180 Pioneer Electric Cooperative, Inc.
181 Pipefitters Local Union #208
182 Platte River Power Authority
183 PNM Resources
184 Poudre Valley Rural Electric Assn.
185 Powder River Energy Corp.
186 Power & Industrial Services Corp
187 POWER Engineers, Inc.
188 Power Equipment Specialists, Inc.
189 Power Pole Inspections
190 Power Product Services
191 PowerQuip Corporation
192 Precision Resource Company
193 Provo City Power
194 Quanta Services
195 REC Associates
196 Reliability Management Group (RMG)
197 Reliable Power Consultants, Inc.
198 Rkneal, Inc.
199 Sabre Tubular Structures
200 Safety One Inc.
201 San Isabel Electric Assn.
202 San Marcos Electric Utility
203 San Miguel Power Assn.
204 Sangre De Cristo Electric Assn.
205 Sargent & Lundy
206 Savage Services Corporation
207 Sega Inc.
208 Siemens Energy Inc.
209 Sierra Electric Cooperative, Inc.
210 Solomon Associates
211 South Central PPD
212 Southeast Colorado Power Assn.
213 Southeast Community College
214 Southern Pioneer Electric Company
215 Southwest Energy Systems LLC
216 Southwest Generation
217 Southwest Public Power District
218 Southwest Transmission Cooperative, Inc.
219 Southwire Company
220 Springfield Municipal Light & Power
221 SPX Cooling Technologies
222 SPX Transformer Solutions, Inc.
223 SRP
224 St. George Energy Services Department
225 Stanley Consultants, Inc.
226 Stantec Consulting
227 STEAG Energy Services LLC
228 Storm Technologies Inc.
229 Sturgeon Electric Co., Inc.
230 Sulphur Springs Valley Electric Cooperative
231 Sundt Construction
232 Sunflower Electric Power Corporation
233 Surveying And Mapping, Inc.
234 Switchgear Solutions, Inc.
235 T & R Electric Supply Co., Inc.
236 T&D PowerSkills, LLC
237 Technically Speaking, Inc.
238 TestAmerica Laboratories, Inc.
239 Tetra Tech
240 Thomas & Betts Steel Structures Division
241 Thomas & Betts, Utility
242 Timken Motor & Crane Services, dba Wazee a Timken Brand
243 Total-Western, Inc.
244 Towill, Inc.
245 Trachte, Inc. Buildings & Shelters
246 Trans American Power Products, Inc.
247 TRC Engineers, Inc.
248 Trees Inc
249 Tri-State Generation and Transmission Assn.
250 Trinidad Municipal Light & Power
251 U.S. Water Services
252 UC Synergetic
253 Ulteig Engineers, Inc.
254 United Power, Inc.
255 Universal Field Services, Inc.
256 University of Colorado
257 University of Idaho Utility Executive Course College of Business and Economics
258 UNS Energy Corporation
259 URS Energy & Construction Inc.
260 Utility Telecom Consulting Group, Inc.
261 Valmont Newmark, Valmont Industries, Inc.
262 Vickrey & Associates
263 Victaulic
264 Wärtsilä North America, Inc.
265 Wave Engineering, Inc.
266 WESCO
267 Westar Energy
268 Western Area Power Administration
269 Western Electrical Services
270 Western Line Constructors Chapter, Inc. NECA
271 Western Nebraska Community College
272 Western United Electric Supply
273 Westmark Partners LLC
274 Westwood Professional Services
275 Wheat Belt Public Power District
276 Wheatland Electric Cooperative
277 Wheatland Rural Electric Assn.
278 White River Electric Assn., Inc.
279 White River Valley Electric Cooperative
280 WHPacific, Inc.
281 Willbros Engineers
282 William W. Rutherford & Associates
283 Wyoming Municipal Power Agency
284 Xcel Energy
285 Y-W Electric Association, Inc.
286 Yampa Valley Electric Association, Inc.
287 Zachry Holdings, Inc.
TOTAL NUMBER OF MEMBERS: 287
W W W . R M E L . O R G 39
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RMEL 2014 CALENDAR
January 14, 2014San Antonio Introduction to the Electric Utility WorkshopSan Antonio, Texas
January 15, 2014Austin Introduction to the Electric Utility WorkshopAustin, Texas
January 21-22, 2014Utility Financing for Non-Financial Personnel WorkshopLone Tree, CO
February 13-14, 2014Distribution Engineers WorkshopLone Tree, CO
February 21, 2014Safety Roundtable - February 2014 Westminster, CO
March 6-7, 2014Power Supply Planning and Projects ConferenceLone Tree, CO
March 7, 2014Generation Vital Issues RoundtableLone Tree, CO
March 11-12, 2014Transmission Planning and Operations ConferenceLone Tree, CO
March 12, 2014Transmission Vital Issues RoundtableLone Tree, CO
March 13-14, 2014Distribution Overhead and Underground Operations and Maintenance ConferenceLone Tree, CO
March 14, 2014Distribution Vital Issues RoundtableLone Tree, CO
March 27, 2014Electric Utility Workforce Management Conference and Roundtable Lone Tree, CO
April 10-11, 2014Advanced Substation Design WorkshopLone Tree, CO
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April 25, 2014Safety Roundtable - April 2014Lone Tree, CO
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June 12, 2014NERC Training Conference and RoundtableLone Tree, CO
June 26, 2014Transmission Operations and Maintenance Conference Omaha, NE
July 29-30, 2014Plant Management, Engineering and Operations Conference Salt Lake City, UT
July 30, 2014Generation Vital Issues RoundtableSalt Lake City, UT
August 2014Safety Roundtable - August 2014Kansas City, MO
September 14-16, 2014Fall Executive Leadership and Management ConventionSan Antonio, TX
September 25, 20142015 Spring Management, Engineering and Operations Conference Planning SessionLone Tree, CO
October 9, 2014Asset Management Conference Lone Tree, CO
October 16, 2014Renewable Planning and Operations ConferenceLone Tree, CO
November 6, 2014Review of Industry Standards for Distribution Workshop Lone Tree, CO
November 14, 2014Safety Roundtable - November 2014 Fort Collins, CO
2014 Calendar of Events
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W W W . R M E L . O R G 41
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