General Manager’s Message – June 2025
Planning for the Roadblocks
Those who have read my columns know I like to look back at history and apply those lessons to our current events. On June 6, 1944, the greatest invasion in military history was the Allied land, air, and sea operation against the German forces on the Normandy coast of France.
The United States was, by far, the largest equipment supplier for this invasion. The force consisted of some 6,000 ships, 50,000 land vehicles, and 11,000 planes. The planning to prepare for it was far-reaching, and what I wish to focus on. The U.S. officially entered the war in December 1941. In just 2 years and 5 months, then-President Franklin Delano Roosevelt fundamentally changed our economy. But I think luck might have played into those history-changing events.
President Roosevelt founded the Rural Electrification Administration in 1935 with an executive order. Later funded by Congress in 1936, the REA’s main source of electrical power was hydro, with dams making up 94% of the power supply. In creating the REA, I believe Roosevelt knew the U.S. had to expand its electrical generation sources, hence the completion of the Hoover Dam in 1936 and the Grand Coulee Dam in 1942.
The first roadblock to these plans for electrical growth in a “normal” economy was the Great Depression in 1929, which cost President Herbert Hoover his job. But as incoming president, Roosevelt had the foresight to carry on the existing hydro projects and add more.
The second major roadblock was the start of World War II. The excess electrical demand capacity built in the worst economic times was plain luck. The U.S. economy flipped from below normal standards to a full-scale war effort. Increasing the manufacturing capacity to supply the massive amounts of war equipment required excess electrical power, which the U.S. fortunately had. And do not forget the women and men who worked in plants to construct that equipment. This process shows the character and can-do spirit that made America great.
Hydro lost its position as the top power source for this country in 1956. Natural gas won out over coal in 2001 and is still the top today. So, what is going to be the next top power source? If you think my answer is wind and solar, I would have to be standing downwind of a concert. I will go on record to say it will not be those because the challenges we face are real and not normal.
The roadblocks we are facing today are data centers, new manufacturing in the U.S., electric vehicles, and the political climate. In March, I discussed the possible electric demand shortage and our electric demand portfolio. Currently, our baseload and intermediate demand are adequate. But forecasting the need for peaking demand has led us to start planning and constructing a new 450-megawatt peaking generation facility at the Lowman Energy Center. We added 700 megawatts of baseload demand there to replace 480 megawatts of coal capacity.
As I have said before, we are not a big player in the electric industry. But we know that to you, the member-owner, we are huge because you rely on us for reliable and affordable electric power.
Historically, the average timeframe to add some type of demand generation plans has been 10 years. Today, that has dropped to about every 6 years. With that construction timeframe being shorter, we need more access to capital. We have that currently, and interest rates are reasonable for capital expansion compared to 1980, when they were in double digits. But long-term interest rates have increased from historic lows in the last 15 years.
While we still must apply the foresight of our country’s past leaders, we will have to navigate around these roadblocks to furnish you, the cooperative member, with quality and reliable service at reasonable rates.
In closing, I ask that we do not forget the greatest generation that made the ultimate sacrifice on June 6, 1944. If you have not seen it, I encourage you to look up the Normandy American Cemetery on YouTube. I have been blessed to see that site in person, where approximately 9,400 Americans rest. I also do not think the lucky events in this article were luck, but that God has always blessed the U.S. I pray that he always will.