7:10 p.m. – Sunday April 27 Winds have caused scattered outages, with a total of about 700 members out of power. Crews are working on restoring power, but there are more than 35 separate outage events across WEC territory it may take some time for crews to make all necessary repairs. There are outages causing a larger number of members losing power in Calais, Walden
April 27, 2025
Not all outages are measured with the same yardstick: regulations require that utilities count, and report, outages that occur during major storms separately from outages that occur outside major storms. That gives a clearer picture of what outage norms are like, both during storms and outside storms. “Major storm” is a category with specific criteria. One criterion for major storm is outage length, so when
April 8, 2025
Service Quality and Reliability Plan Results for 2024 SQRP 2024 – By Louis Porter Washington Electric Cooperative reports annually to state regulators on how well it provided service to its members over the last year. The Service Quality and Reliability Plan or SQRP report consists of 12 categories designed to take a snapshot of where we are doing well and where we need to improve.
April 8, 2025
The big question is, how do we slow the flow? How do we, as landowners and towns, give some room for that water storage to occur? If we leave streams alone they eventually heal themselves over time. Sometimes it’s simply a matter of stepping back, not re-trenching the stream, and being okay with how the stream and the land around it may change. – Mike
April 8, 2025
General Manager’s Message – by Louis Porter As members might imagine, preparing for outages and for the safe restoration of power after a storm is among the most important things we do here at WEC. We are working to minimize those outages and respond quickly to safely restore power. For example, we are implementing a new metering system which will help us get more information
April 8, 2025
Treasurer’s Report 2024 – By Don Douglas, Treasurer The net margins in 2024 were $868,465, which is nearly $200,000 less than 2023, but is still sufficient to satisfy our lenders’ loan covenants. In 2024 Washington Electric Cooperative recognized an increase in revenue of $534,265 from the previous year. Sales of renewable energy credits (RECs) were $1,882,175 which is also down from the previous year by
April 8, 2025
The concept of beneficial electrification is widely promoted as a means of reducing greenhouse gas emissions in the state. But the success of beneficial electrification depends on people like you and me choosing to use more electricity and less gasoline, propane, heating oil, and the like. – Stephen Knowlton By Stephen Knowlton In last year’s President’s report to the members, I talked of storms, outages,
April 8, 2025
4:25 p.m. – Wednesday, March 19 Crews have successfully 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. 2:30 p.m.- Wednesday, March 19 Due to additional pole damage found, restoration is now estimated to 4:00p.m. The
March 19, 2025
1:20 p.m. – Friday, March 14, 2025 Power has been restored to all members. There are high winds predicted for Sunday so please be prepared as usual for possible outages. Thank you. 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. 12:45 p.m. – Friday, March
March 14, 2025
March 7, 2025 – 3:45p.m. The large outage in Middlesex has been restored. The crews have been steadying working throughout the day. There are small outages in the territory and may continue to occur due to the high winds. Again, please be prepared for sporadic outages during high winds. Remember: if you see lines down, do not touch or approach them. They could still be energized.
March 7, 2025
March 7, 2025 – 11:40 am Crews have removed a tree from the WEC lines and power has been restored 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. March 7, 2025 – 11:30a.m. Crews are out removing a fallen tree on Cherry
March 7, 2025
By Don Douglas We decided to replace our gas-fired water heater about three years ago. The old water heater was a replacement for the electric water heater that had failed just when WEC was paying an incentive to change from electric to propane to help members keep their bills as low as possible. This time there’s an incentive to change from fossil fuels back to
February 20, 2025
Co-op focuses Tier III incentives to benefit income-qualified members; updates on regulatory requirements; a new legislative session; another competitive Board election In encouraging a more direct connection to Efficiency Vermont, we’re trying to ensure WEC members get good access to Efficiency Vermont services they are paying for on their electric bills. – Stephen Knowlton Our Member Service Representatives will be our in-house contacts for most
February 20, 2025
Monday – February 17, 2025 – 4:30 p.m. Crews have restored power to all members. As noted below, there are still high winds impacting WEC territory so please be prepared for power outages. Thank you. 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 –
February 17, 2025
Friday – 2/7/25 – 8:15 a.m. Member power has been completely restored at this time. Please continue to be prepared for the high winds forecasted for today. Thank you and be safe. 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. Friday
February 7, 2025
Sunday – January 26, 2025 – 7:00 p.m. Winds have subsided and power has been restored to all but 3 members. Efforts are being made to restore power this evening to all members. Thank you to the crew for their restoration efforts and to the members for their patience. Sunday – January 26, 2025 – 4:00 p.m. Due to high winds WEC is experiencing 256
January 26, 2025
Board Candidacy and Bylaws Petition Deadlines Due Feb/March Time to flip open those new 2025 calendars: WEC’s Annual Meeting will be held on Thursday, May 1. At every Annual Meeting, three members are elected to WEC’s Board of Directors. Any member of the Co-op is eligible to run for election. In recent years, Board of Directors elections have been competitive, and some results have been
January 8, 2025
Background for January’s 2.91% Rate Increase WEC Plans to Sell Wrightsville Plant, Understanding How WEC Responds to Winter Storm Outages From our substations, power is delivered to you from a branching network of electric lines. One or more breaks anywhere along this path, regardless if they’re on WEC’s lines or not, will cause your power to go out. That’s how electricity flows. If we don’t
January 8, 2025
Rising property taxes drive rate pressure while Co-op leaders work to keep it under 3% On November 13, 2024, Washington Electric Cooperative filed a proposed rate increase of 2.91% with the Public Utility Commission (PUC). The rate increase takes effect January 1, 2025. A major driver of the rate increase is a steep rise in WEC’s property tax burden. WEC is a not-for-profit cooperative utility,
January 8, 2025
JJ Vandette previews the opportunities and efficiencies he’s focused on for next year and beyond About a year in as WEC’s first-ever Director of Special Projects and Innovation, JJ Vandette is already well-seasoned. He’s helping lead the Co-op’s process to switch to advanced meters, and he assembled WEC’s Integrated Resource Plan—a comprehensive strategic document required by regulators. He’s also keeping track and making priorities based
January 8, 2025