Bulletin (Northwest Public Power Association) articles from May 2007

Bulletin (Northwest Public Power Association) archives from May 2007

Bouchard retires from NWPPA.(Association News)
May 1, 2007... With mixed emotions, NWPPA staff said farewell to Dave Bouchard, member relations manager, as he retired from the Association on April 30. Though everyone was happy, if not a bit jealous, for his retirement plans, the staff was sad to see him...

Calling all administrative assistants!(Association News)
May 1, 2007... Attention all administrative assistants, executive secretaries, and office personnel! Have you heard about the exciting Executive Assistant/Administrative Assistant Workshop that NWPPA has created? The workshop will be held in Wenatchee, Wash.,...

A look back at public power.
May 1, 2007... 50 years ago--1957 Roger L. Conkling, director of budget and management for Bonneville Power Administration, received one of 10 annual Arthur J. Flemming awards for outstanding young men in federal government... Grant County PUD conducted...

Have you ever had a difficult customer?(Customer Service)
May 1, 2007... Every day, your customers call for a variety of reasons: they have a service problem, they don't understand the charges on their bill, they don't understand why their utility bill is so high, etc. They have an expectation that when they call...

Managing technology changes.(Information Technology)
May 1, 2007... For many organizations, managing technology changes is a relatively new concept. Most consumer-owned utilities have systems that will be either upgraded or replaced within the near future. These upgrades, acquisitions, and/or implementations...

The truth about arbitration agreements: will they work for you?(Legal)
May 1, 2007... Since the courts, in general, prefer to see parties resolve their disputes through arbitration, they have enthusiastically enforced these agreements, even if the process may be viewed to favor one of the parties. Courts are extremely busy....

Planning & conducting a strategic planning offsite.(Policy Making & Management)
May 1, 2007... More than a few strategic planning efforts have run aground because of the failure to correctly plan and implement. Key leaders from board and management go in with good intentions, but end tip shooting themselves in the foot. How does...

Peninsula Light appoints new CEO.(Member News)
May 1, 2007... The Peninsula Light Company (PLC) Board of Directors recently announced the appointment of Jafar Taghavi to the position of chief executive officer. Taghavi replaced retiring CEO Rob Orton on April 30. A manager with Anaheim Public...

Hanke appointed to national public power council.(Member News)
May 1, 2007... The American Public Power Association's (APPA) Board of Directors recently appointed Clark Public Utilities Commissioner Byron Hanke to a three-year term on the APPA's Policy Makers Council. The council is made up of 40 members who either...

Lewis County fills commissioner vacancy.(Member News)
May 1, 2007... On April 2, Commissioners Charles R. TenPas and James H. Hubenthal appointed Ben Kostick to fill the vacancy of commissioner of Public Utility District No. 1 of Lewis County. The commissioners wish to thank the 11 candidates for their...

Riazzi named to state climate change panel.(Member News)
May 1, 2007... Chelan County PUD General Manager Rich Riazzi has been named to the Washington Climate Change Challenge Advisory Team. The team will consider a range of policies and strategies that may be adopted to achieve the goals that Gov. Christine...

AVEC awards Top 10 of 2006.(Member News)
May 1, 2007... Alaska Village Electric Cooperative (AVEC) recently announced the Top Ten Power Plant Operators of 2006: William Koso of Anvik; Francis Bell of Chevak; Victor Keen of Kasigluk; Lewis Wesley, Sr. of Kivalina; Alan Boliver of Marshall; David...

Clatskanie builds partnership for a better community.(Member News)
May 1, 2007... On March 23, the Clatskanie People's Utility District's Board of Directors unanimously approved the Consent and Assignment of its Electric Power and Services Contract with Cascade Grain. This agreement facilitates the completion of Cascade...

Sullivan managing new Prosser branch.(Member News)
May 1, 2007... Effective March 26, 2007, Patrick Sullivan became the manager of Benton PUD's new Prosser branch office. Sullivan started at Benton PUD in 1995 and most recently was a district station electrician foreman. Prior to working at Benton PUD, he...

SMUD earns RP3 award from APPA.(Member News)
May 1, 2007... The American Public Power Association (APPA) awarded the Reliable Public Power Provider (RP3) platinum award to the Sacramento Municipal Utility District (SMUD) for its outstanding achievement in providing safe and reliable electricity to its...

New substation named after Chugach chief engineer.(Member News)
May 1, 2007... Chugach Electric renamed its new South Anchorage Substation after Robert W. Retherford at a ceremony on March 16. Retherford was the first chief engineer for Chugach, having worked at the utility from 1950 to 1954. He went on to start his own...

Office addition for Pend Oreille.(Member News)
May 1, 2007... Pend Oreille PUD began construction of a 5,202 square foot addition to its main office building in downtown Newport, Wash., in February. The new addition will be adjacent to Pine Street, filling the corner between the original building and the...

IID partner earns DOE award.(Member News)
May 1, 2007... A low-cost, high-concentration photovoltaic (PV) system for utility markets proposed by IID Energy partner Amonix was among 13 solar PV energy projects recently awarded up to a total of $168 million in funding by the U.S. Department of Energy...

Energy Northwest extends perfect record to 8 years.(Member News)
May 1, 2007... For the eighth consecutive year, public power leader Energy Northwest has been given a clean bill of health by Washington State financial auditors. The recently completed annual audit examined the joint operating agency's (JOA) financial...

MEWCO holds annual meeting.(Member News)
May 1, 2007... Modern Electric Water Company's (MEWCO) Annual Shareholder Meeting was held on February 24, 2007. Hardy, wishes of congratulations went out to incumbents Dr. James Bourekis and Barry Baker who were reelected to their positions. The current...

La Venta II Substation now energized.(Associate Member News)
May 1, 2007... Schweitzer Engineering Laboratories, Inc. (SEL) announced that Wind Park La Venta II, the world's first substation to implement multiple suppliers' IEC 61850 products, is successfully operating in Juchitan Oaxaca, Mexico. SEL provided the...

TEA joins with Lakeland Electric.(Associate Member News)
May 1, 2007... Lakeland Electric, Florida's third-largest public power utility, recently signed a contract with The Energy Authority[R] (TEA) for financial natural gas hedging services. "Financial instruments can play an important role in managing energy...

SMUD chooses Inner-Tite meter locking rings.(Associate Member News)
May 1, 2007... Inner-Tite Corp., manufacturers of security devices for utilities, announced that they have been awarded a three-year contract to provide over 600,000 meter locking rings to Sacramento Municipal Utility District (SMUD). The security devices are...

NWPPA's 2007 Legislative Rally proves fruitful; each year these visits prove timely and beneficial for advancing the association's collective legislative priorities, and this year was no different.(Washington D.C. Report)(Cover story)
May 1, 2007... From April 16 to 19, NWPPA held its annual Legislative Rally in Washington, D.C., and visited with every congressional office of Alaska, Idaho, Montana, Nevada, Oregon, and Washington. The trip also included an invitation for NWPPA's Executive...

Northwest Public Power Association: 2006-2007 annual report.
May 1, 2007... Dear Members, The NWPPA Board of Trustees and staff are very proud of the work the Association has performed on your behalf during 2006-07 and are excited about the opportunities NWPPA has for helping member utilities address new...