Pending Public Utility Commission Approval, WEC Rolls Out Tier III Annual Plans Incentive programs help WEC members save money as they reduce their carbon footprints. Through Vermont’s Renewable Energy Standard (RES), all of the state’s electric utilities are required to help members shift their energy use from fossil fuels to other sources like electric power. This requirement is called Tier III, and members often experience
January 7, 2026
WEC was created by neighbors who banded together to bring electric power to their farms and villages when for-profit utilities would not invest in rural Vermont. Concern for community—a principle shared by all cooperatives—is a priority at WEC. Staff, volunteers, and many members live into it in many different ways—from everyday support services, to donating capital credits to the Community Fund, to seasonal programs. Member
January 7, 2026
Over 10 years, a three-phase grant cycle totaling $217,000 from the Vermont Low Income Trust for Electricity (VLITE) helped WEC fundamentally change its members’ access to electric vehicles by investing in charging infrastructure, and building out an early system for flexible load management. VLITE is a public-benefit nonprofit with a significant ownership stake in VELCO (Vermont Electric Power Company), Vermont’s transmission-only electric utility. It uses
January 7, 2026
October is Co-op Month, and it’s also conference season. While I attended a committee meeting related to my duties on the board of the National Rural Electric Cooperative Association (NRECA), several of my fellow Board members and GM Louis Porter attended the conference for our regional association, Northeast Association of Electric Cooperatives (NEAEC), which includes co-ops in Vermont, New York, New Hampshire, Maine, and Rhode
January 7, 2026
By Stephen Knowlton I believe that net metering incentives going forward could be productively recast to instead promote the storage of solar energy by batteries or other means. Washington Electric has recently reached the milestone of registering its 1,000th net metering member. That means that nearly 10% of WEC’s members have solar net metering arrays, and they produce roughly 10% of the electricity consumed by
January 7, 2026
Factors Impacting WEC’s Rates and Members’ Bills Proceeding with the RES with new mandates, the state should scale back earlier programs that are no longer effective in producing renewable electricity at the lowest reasonable cost. – Steve Knowlton The most important and successful thing we can do as a utility is keep our total cost of electricity down for all members. – Louis Porter Affordability
January 7, 2026
Co-op Currents invites members to write in with their honest experiences buying and installing hot water heat pumps, cold climate heat pumps, electric vehicles, and other new electric tech. Your tips and advice are valuable to fellow members considering similar purchases. Submit your stories to currents@wec.coop. Stories will be published as time and space allow. Co-op Currents will contact you to confirm before publication. Please
January 7, 2026
Wednesday – 1/7/2026 – 11:00 AM Crews have restored power to all members. Thank you for your patience. Remember: if you see lines down, do not touch or approach them. They could still be energized. Please report any downed wires or trees by calling WEC immediately at 1-802-223-5245 or 1-800-932-5245. 1/7/26 – 9:00 AM WEC is experiencing 4 outage events with 134 members without power. This is due to
January 7, 2026
Tuesday, December 30, 2025 – 2:15 pm All outages in WEC territory have been restored. About 29 remain out of power statewide. Thanks to WEC’s incredible line crew, dispatchers, members services representatives and others who have worked so hard over the last two days, and to our members for their patience. Remember: if you see lines down, do not touch or approach them. They could still
December 29, 2025
Friday, December 19, 2025 – 7:30 pm WEC crews have restored power to all members. We do anticipate more winter weather including high winds this weekend so please be prepared for the possibility of additional outages. Thanks to the WEC line workers for their efforts to restore power today. Remember: if you see lines down, do not touch or approach them. They could still be energized.
December 19, 2025
Thursday Nov 6, 2025 – 7 pm WEC crews have restored power to all members. Remember: if you see lines down, do not touch or approach them. They could still be energized. Please report any downed wires or trees by calling WEC immediately at 1-802-223-5245 or 1-800-932-5245. Thursday – 11:30 a.m. WEC is currently experiencing an outage in the Fayston Waitsfield area impacting 64 members. Crews found two broken
November 6, 2025
Tuesday, Nov 5, 2025 – 3:30 pm All outages in WEC territory have been restored, although we anticipate additional wind overnight and tomorrow. About 400 remain out of power statewide. Remember: if you see lines down, do not touch or approach them. They could still be energized. Please report any downed wires or trees by calling WEC immediately at 1-802-223-5245 or 1-800-932-5245. Tuesday, Nov 5, 2025 – 2 p.m.
November 4, 2025
Friday, Oct 31, 2024 – 3 pm Power has been restored to all WEC members, although we anticipate additional windy conditions later tonight and into tomorrow. Thanks to WEC’s terrific line crew members, dispatchers, member services representatives and others who worked overnight and today and to WEC members for their patience. Remember: if you see lines down, do not touch or approach them. They could still
October 31, 2025
By Susan Alexander So, what’s really in it for me if I transfer my gas dollars into electric dollars? Aside from the benefits to our air quality, the real reason is that as a member of a co-op, and helping to make that co-op financially strong, we can all benefit from an increase in the number of kWh sold. – Susan Alexander Cooperatives exist in
October 30, 2025
Being prepared is taking responsibility for the safety and comfort of yourself and those around you. That means staying informed, having the supplies you need, and making wise choices. As winter storm season approaches, the Co-op asks all members to please prepare for the possibility of outages. During major storms, outages can last several days. This annual checklist is published in Co-op Currents to help
October 30, 2025
WEC’s Right-of-Way Coordinator Describes how AI Supports Plans to Trim Trees and Reduce Outages The work of reducing outages proactively in a forested utility territory is ongoing—never finished. In WEC’s heavily forested territory, falling trees are the most frequent cause of outages. And in member surveys, WEC members consistently say reliability is what they value the most. But as long as there are trees, there
October 30, 2025
FEMA mitigation grant supports line improvement using new tree-resistant cable The goal is fewer outages on that section of line. Even if a tree lays on the wires, power should stay on. – Dave Kresock In December 2022, Winter Storm Elliott left Washington Electric Cooperative with some of the worst storm damage of any cooperative in the country, including 41 broken poles and thousands of
October 30, 2025
WEC Buys a Ford F150 Lightning, Surpasses 1,000 Net Metering Members An increasing number of members are using electricity for charging EVs and powering cold climate heat pumps and hot water heat pumps for their primary heat and hot water. So there’s a group of members who are depending more on electricity for more purposes, and that presumably sparks an interest in having electricity be
October 30, 2025
Monday – October 20, 2025 – 2:45 pm All outages have been restored! Thanks to WEC’s line crew members for their great work, and to members for their patience! Remember: if you see lines down, do not touch or approach them. They could still be energized. Please report any downed wires or trees by calling WEC immediately at 1-802-223-5245 or 1-800-932-5245. Monday – October 20, 2025 – 2:20 pm
October 20, 2025
It’s really important to me to be in public power. And I think WEC’s a great place to participate in public power. – Brian Callnan When you’re the size of WEC, you can do innovative things a little bit quicker. – Brian Callnan Brian Callnan, who recently joined WEC as Director of Power Supply and Regulatory Affairs, is a public power lifer. He values the
September 4, 2025