Team Up To Power Down

Many factors are pressuring prices for electricity. Whether it’s at the gas pumps or at power plants, prices for the fuel are climbing rapidly. Material costs are going up, as well. Utility poles, trucks, distribution materials and equipment costs rose 98 percent in the last decade.

It also costs more to deliver electricity to rural areas because there are simply fewer people to share the costs of installation, materials, and maintenance of power lines, substations, and transmission equipment associated with power delivery.

The cost to deliver power through the regional grid is also increasing. This is due to regional transmission network improvements and changes in the wholesale power markets. While most of us want clean, reliable energy, there are costs associated with environmental compliance and maintaining reliability.

During the past five years, our power supplier, Hoosier Energy, has invested more than $600 million in capital projects for environmental facilities and new generation resources to meet increasing power requirements. Their latest business plan calls for investing an additional $900 million through 2015, primarily to comply with environmental regulations.

These are just some of the economic pressures driving up the price of electricity. But there are things you can do help keep electricity affordable. We’re asking you to “Team Up To Power Down” in a joint effort to save energy and money. We’re asking you to become informed on why costs are increasing and to consider changes in how and when you use electricity.

Ideas for what you can do to change the way you use energy may be found at www.Facebook.com/TeamUpToPowerDown. You’ll find easy-to-follow energy tips and links to how-to videos. Videos regarding updates on the electric industry are also available.

You can also find information online at TogetherWeSave.com, EnergyStar.com and EnergySavers.gov.

While there are pressures on the cost of generating and delivering electricity to your home or business, there are steps you can take to reduce the impact on your electric bill. By working together, all of us win in the effort to keep the cost of electricity as affordable as possible.