LREC joins cooperatives across the country every October to celebrate National Cooperative Month. National Cooperative Month recognizes the cooperative difference and reminds all of us about LREC’s purpose. Minnesota was the first state to declare an official Co-op Month proclamation in 1948. Co-op Month has been a nationally recognized celebration since 1964, when U.S. Secretary…
When I check my Midcontinent Independent System Operator (MISO) app on my phone, it regularly shows (with some variation) approximately 80%-90% of MISO’s electricity generation coming from coal, natural gas, and nuclear. The Real-Time Displays pictured to the right is a screenshot I took from the MISO app on August 15th, and it provides a…
I have mentioned it many times before, but LREC is here to serve you, our member-owners. We never take the service you deserve for granted, and we want to continue to increase the value of your membership. Our goal is to make sure you feel the value of being a member of LREC is not…
2023 Legislation Will Impact Everyone Who Uses ElectricityMinnesota’s 2023 legislative session was one of the most consequential in history for LREC members and the rest of Minnesota’s 1.7 million cooperative members. The landmark 2040 Carbon Free Standard made this legislative session one with long-term impacts on everyone using electricity in the state. A lot of…
At LREC, we have always strived to provide our members with safe, reliable, and affordable electricity. We have taken actions to be your local trusted energy services provider by offering a community solar opportunity for our members, installing GoWest Solar units, implementing our generator program, and promoting our many demand response programs. However, we don’t…
We had a great 86th annual meeting on April 13th! Once again we had in-person meetings in Fergus Falls, Frazee, and Parkers Prairie, together with a livestream option. Nearly 1,200 people attended the event either in-person or via livestream — marking the second year in a row that attendance for LREC’s annual meeting has been around…
Appreciating LREC EmployeesI am so grateful for our employees, all of whom are necessary to serve our members. It takes an entire team, and this column is dedicated to all of them. National Lineworker DayLREC will celebrate National Lineworker Appreciation Day on April 10th. Lineworkers are highly skilled and highly trained professionals who do what…
Legislative UpdateLast month, Governor Walz signed into law landmark legislation setting a 100% carbon-free by 2040 standard (CFS), meaning that all electricity must come from carbon free sources, or be offset by renewable energy credits (RECs), by 2040. All utilities have an interim requirement of 90% by 2035. Cooperatives have an interim requirement of 60%…
Thank you to all the LREC members who attended the three 2023 district meetings held last month in-person or by livestream. Around 130 members, plus many LREC directors and employees, attended the meetings. If you did not attend your district’s meeting, please note the recorded meetings are available on our website at www.lrec.coop. It was…
Customer Satisfaction SurveyThank you to all our members who completed the recent customer satisfaction survey. What I appreciate most about the survey is that it gives our members another opportunity to provide feedback, ask questions, and express concerns. Your feedback and comments give us an opportunity each year to see how we are doing when…