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2024 Annual Report - President & Chairman's Report
Chris Reese, President & CEO
Jack Haggerty, Chairman of the Board
88 years ago, Sussex Rural Electric Cooperative was built by members of the community who were committed to bringing electric service to their farms and rural neighborhoods. While not a profitable choice for the investor-owned utilities nearby, these community members knew the value of bringing power to their homes and they made it happen. The territory has changed quite a bit since then, but at the core, our mission remains to provide our members with the highest quality of service at the lowest possible cost. We live in this community, as do many of the employees of the Cooperative and we are committed to continuing the legacy that began in 1937.
SREC continues to demonstrate resilience and innovation in the face of recurring challenges of rising power supply costs and economic inflation. Guided by steady board leadership and the dedication of our experienced employees, we faced numerous challenges, including ongoing inflationary pressures and supply chain issues, while maintaining our commitment to our core values.
The ever-changing government regulations that put power reliability in jeopardy plague our industry. In 2024, the SREC board approved a rate increase of 7%, including an increase in the System Connection Fee, the fixed monthly charge that covers the costs associated for your home to be connected to our grid, our “system.” This increase was necessary because increasing operating costs, including materials, supplies and equipment, outpaced our ability to maintain operations under existing rates.
Our diverse power mix, over 80% carbon-free, is achieved through nuclear power from the Susquehanna Steam Electric Station (which provides the majority of our electricity) and hydropower from the Raystown Hydroelectric Plant and Niagara Power Project, plus additional fossil fuels, renewables, nuclear, and hydropower from the open market. This power mix has been the key to keeping our rate increase significantly lower than those of our neighbors.
Extreme weather events continued to affect our system in 2024, resulting in an increased number of outages due to the storms’ impact on trees, which have been weakened by invasive species. For instance, two storms this past summer lasted under 20 minutes each and only hit parts of the territory, yet those 10-20 minutes of high winds caused extensive outages and together cost the Cooperative over $500,000.
A multi-year project concluded in 2024, replacing all of our older hydraulic reclosers with newer electronic reclosers called TripSavers.® Older, hydraulic reclosers required costly maintenance every five years, which meant taking down the heavy device that weighed hundreds of pounds and sending it out for service. The new TripSavers® are much smaller, lighter, and need less maintenance. A TripSaver,® like a recloser, will blink the line if it experiences a fault but will keep the power on if the fault clears.
We spent over $1.5 million on tree trimming in 2024. This is almost three times more than was spent just 10 years ago. In 2024, 102 miles of line were trimmed and over 1,200 poles were inspected. 150 miles of line were inspected by drone, a newer technology that we have been using the past few years. In 2024, the average Sussex REC member had their power on and available 99.5% of the time.
As we plan for the future, we continue to embrace innovation and use new technology to enhance the value of electricity for our members and the safety of our employees. Safety is critical to a company specializing in a hazardous trade. Our work not only continues during dangerous weather conditions, but often increases. Our FLISR system (Fault Location, Isolation, and Service Restoration) went live in 2024 after extensive testing of the system. This is a computerized, self-healing network that can restore electric service to a large portion of an outage within seconds and reduce the number of affected members. More details about FLISR will be published in a future Currents issue.
Cybersecurity continued to be a focus in 2024 as cybercriminals are targeting utilities of all sizes as a key component to that critical infrastructure. Our diligence is crucial to providing you with reliable power. SREC invested in updating existing software, testing its network for vulnerabilities, and installing new technology to meet the continual challenge of keeping its network and data safe.
Sussex Rural Electric Cooperative is in year 23 of its 50-year contract with the U.S. Army to provide utility services within Picatinny Arsenal. Throughout 2024, many improvements, upgrades, and replacements were completed. This includes over two miles of improvements to circuits on base in multiple locations and multiple service transfers. Our contract with Picatinny continues to benefit the Cooperative, allowing us to maintain strong line crew coverage during storms and large jobs.
Our Annual Meeting Event will be coming up soon, once again split into an Online Meeting covering the business portion of the event and an in-person Member Appreciation Event held at the NJ State Fair. Our Online Meeting becomes available on Monday, July 7th, and you will be able to register for our in-person event to reserve up to two free Fair tickets. We are also offering early registration this year for the chance to win demolition derby tickets. On August 4th at the Fair, SREC’s employees and directors will be staffing our booth at the BBQ Pavilion at the Fairgrounds where we will be providing $10 bill credits and giveaway items to registered members. We hope that you’ll join us at the Fair!
As we look ahead to the opportunities and challenges that 2025 may bring, we do so with confidence, knowing that your Cooperative’s greatest strength lies in its people. Our steadfast dedication to supporting the local economy, exercising financial prudence, and championing sustainability underscores our unwavering commitment to our members and the world around us.
OTHER 2024 UPDATES
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Our wholly owned subsidiary SREC Resources continued to provide electrical contracting services to the area.
Find more information on SREC Resources at www.NoMoreOutages.com |
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Electric Thermal Storage heat is available exclusively to Sussex REC members and provides electric heating at an off-peak rate. ETS's stable price helps Sussex REC members avoid price swings to heat their home with propane or fuel oil.
Interested? Learn more about Electric Thermal Storage at www.yes2ets.com |
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In 2024, we returned Over the last 10 years, we've returned over |
