Roulet Report

March 29, 2013

Unplugged

There is probably a lot more solar power used in Oklahoma than most people would think. It is just not coming from large solar arrays, or dozens of solar panels on the roofs of buildings or houses.

The three applications you hear the most about are; solar powered water wells for watering livestock, solar fence chargers for electrifying electric fences, and solar heating of swimming pools. A solar panel associated with a battery and a fence charger works very well especially when electric service is not available. A similar application for pumping water to fill stock tanks also works well, but is a little more complicated and expensive.

In southern California, southern Arizona, and parts of New Mexico, it is common to see several solar panels on roofs that supply a significant portion of a building’s electrical requirements. Additionally, it is also common to see numerous remote sites that are almost totally powered by the sun. Many of these states contribute significantly through actual cash incentives or tax reductions for these type installations.

In the northeastern corner of New Mexico is one of the larger solar farms (acres of photovoltaic panels) that supply a significant amount of electrical power in the sunlight hours. This probably points out the most significant issue with solar, and that is without a significant storage device, it only provides energy when the sun is shining.

So how much does solar energy cost? Each installation is a little different, but overall it is about 15 cents per kilowatt-hour, and it is necessary to still be connected to the grid to supply a significant portion of your needs. In the next 10 years or so, solar and wind will both work to complement traditional sources of electricity, but it will be difficult for these to be a sole source of power.

T&D Holds Bi-Annual Training at Anadarko

A WFEC crew unloads a new transformer Tuesday afternoon at the rebuilt T&D building in Anadarko. WFEC personnel inspect and prep the transformers before reloading them to be transported to stations in the field.

T&D held bi-annual training this week at the Anadarko facilities. Close to 85 crew members gathered for a brown bag lunch meeting and two day training sessions. Staff from OAEC held grounding and minimum approach distance training. Dr. Monk was on hand to discuss back safety and lifting and Carroll Reddick presented classes on three-way communications & switch recertification. Crews also attended the health & wellness fair. Brown bag lunch door prize winners were: Mark Palesano, Gary Blackburn and Kaleb Riner.

2013 NRECA Financial Planning Workshops – Managing Your Money

Your retirement is the single largest investment you will ever make. What kinds of choices should you be making in these times of roller coaster economics? How can you put time on your side? WFEC will sponsor financial workshops at Anadarko Headquarters (July 9-10) and Hugo (July 11-12). The

workshops will be led by members of NRECA’s Personal Investing & Retirement Consulting (PIRC) team. A full-day workshop will be presented at each location. The morning after each course will be devoted to one-on-one sessions with the PIRC counselor. You do not need to attend the workshop to attend a counseling session, but you must sign up.* The Investment Workshop focuses on early career investment education, including retirement planning and a review of WFEC’s retirement benefits. This course is geared to employees who are at the beginning and middle stages of their work years. WFEC plans to present this beginning/intermediate level of retirement education every other year. In the years between, the financial education will be directed to folks who are within five years of retirement. If you are new to WFEC, or if you’ve been here a while and never taken the opportunity to attend one of the NRECA financial education sessions, this one’s for you! Talk to your supervisor to let him or her know that you’re interested. WFEC pays for the workshop, for lunch on the day of the workshop, and if you must travel from out-of-town, a per diem amount. Spouses are encouraged to attend both the workshop and the counseling sessions. Registration directions: Registration: PeopleSoft HR > Self Service > Learning and Development > Request Training Enrollment > Search by Course Number > Course Number is HR0007; click ‘Search’ > Click ‘View Available Sessions’ > Click on desired session, either 0008 (Anadarko Headquarters) or 0009 (Hugo Plant). (Missing PIN number? Call Jackie Johnson at extension 4512 to have it reset.) How PeopleSoft Registration Works: After you follow the registration directions above, you will receive two e-mails from ‘PSoft’ (PeopleSoft HR). The subject of the first e-mail is, “Request submitted for approval” – if you do not receive this e-mail within a few minutes, your registration did not go through. Call Jackie Johnson at 4512. The subject of the second e-mail is, “Request processed by approver” – PeopleSoft needs approval from your supervisor to complete your registration. If you do not receive this second e-mail within a few days, your supervisor has not yet approved your request – supervisors sometimes miss PeopleSoft messages…just ask your supervisor to respond to the PeopleSoft message. Tell the supervisor the date that you registered – the supervisor’s message was sent to her/him on that same day. Not until you receive the second e-mail are you officially registered for the training.

*One-on-One Sign Up Marsha Baker (405) 247-4450, m_baker@wfec.com

Oklahoma Association of Electric Cooperatives

(OAEC’s) own Jennifer Dempsey and her

family were recently featured by Galen Culver,

on KFOR TV (Channel 4 in OKC) Is This a

Great State or What feature. The Dempseys

are one of five owners in 10079 the state of

Oklahoma of the 100% electric Nissan Leaf

automobile and touted the benefits of having a

100% electric vehicle.

KFOR Channel 4 Link to Story:

http://kfor.com/2013/03/19/great-state-one-of-

oks-first-leafs/

OAEC Employee Featured in News story

Brown Bag Lunch Schedule - Lunch will be Provided at all Locations

Thursday April 4 – 11:30 a.m. Hugo Break Room

Thursday, April 18 – 11:30 a.m. Anadarko HQ Employee Meeting Rooms

Luke Fletcher Receives All State Scholar Award

Luke Fletcher, son of Environmental Specialist Kent

Fletcher and wife, Debbie, was recently selected by the

Oklahoma Foundation of Excellence as an Academic All-State

Scholar. Luke was among 100 top public high school seniors

selected from 599 nominations statewide. Luke and the other

All-Staters will receive a $1,000 merit-based scholarship

and a medallion. The All-Staters will be recognized at the

foundation’s 27th annual Academic Awards Banquet on

Saturday, May 18 at the Cox Convention Center in Oklahoma

City.

Academic All-Staters are nominated by their principals or

superintendents and are selected on the basis of academic

achievement, extracurricular activities and community involvement, as well as an essay submitted by each

nominee.

Luke has his college choices narrowed down to either Oklahoma Christian University or Ozark Christian

College.

Anadarko Plant Holds Brown Bag Lunches

Congratulations to door prize winners: Jeff Green, Wally Young and Bobby

Hendricks

Senior Management met with Anadarko

Plant employees at the year’s first

brown bag lunch in the breakroom at the

Anadarko Plant. Senior staff updated

employees and were available to answer

any questions. A BBQ lunch was served.

Ram National Circuit Finals Rodeo &

Thompson Square Concert

The Touchstone Energy Night of the Ram National Circuit Finals Rodeo will be held at the State Fair Arena in Oklahoma City on Friday, April 5 at 7:30p.m. (Performance #3). Following the rodeo, country duo Thompson Square will perform. WFEC employees and co-op employees have the opportunity to purchase tickets for the event…all proceeds from tickets purchased for the Friday performance will go to the Justin Whitefield Scholarship Fund.

*Tickets purchased for the Friday performance will get you in to both the rodeo and the concert.

Use the following link to purchase tickets online: http://rncfr.com/tickets.html. Click buy tickets/ April 5 performance/ # of tickets desired in section. Please be sure to enter the “OYE13” code in the promo code box to link your purchase back to the scholarship fund. You can also order tickets over the phone at 405-232-7787 and ask for the “OYE Group Tickets”.

If you have any questions, please contact Brittany Hicks at ext. 4335

Energy Efficiency TipRefrigerators and freezers

Purchase an Energy Star model. When buying a new refrigerator or freezer, look for the Energy Star

label. Energy Star refrigerators and freezers can save you hundreds of dollars on your electric bill

over the life of the appliance. Remember, older refrigerators and freezers use two to three times more

electricity than ones that are 10 years old or less.

Select the right size. Determine your household’s needs before purchasing a refrigerator or freezer.

One that is too large wastes energy.

Only use one refrigerator or freezer. You can spend up to $120 in electricity per year using a second

refrigerator or freezer. If you want to use a second refrigerator or freezer during holidays or for special

occasions, turn it on one to two days before you need it.

Don’t set the temperature colder than necessary. Set the refrigerator temperature 05484 between

36° F and 42° F. Set the freezer control so the temperature is between -5° F and +6° F. A small

thermometer placed in the refrigerator or freezer will help you set it correctly.

Clean the unit. Clean dust off the condenser coils, fins, evaporator pan and motor once or twice a

year. A clean unit runs more efficiently. Unplug the unit and clean with a vacuum cleaner or long-

handled brush.

Defrost a manual-defrost unit regularly. Frost makes your unit work harder and wastes energy. Don’t

allow more than one-quarter inch of frost to build up.

Happy Birthday wishes go out to all WFEC employees enjoying a birthday.

Have a wonderful day!

Dale Cart 3/30 Lorre Ervin 3/30 Forrest Brock 3/31 Reed Schmeling 4/02 Daniel Moore 4/03 Becky Sargent 4/03 Durlan Utley 4/03 Brittany Hicks 4/08 Marc Millwee 4/08 Gary Gilleland 4/08 Bill Richard 4/09 Chance Turpin 4/10

“Easter spells out beauty, the rare beauty of new life.” S.D. Gordon

Happy Birthday wishes go out to all WFEC employees enjoying a birthday.

Have a wonderful day!

Dale Cart 3/30 Lorre Ervin 3/30 Forrest Brock 3/31 Reed Schmeling 4/02 Daniel Moore 4/03 Becky Sargent 4/03 Durlan Utley 4/03 Brittany Hicks 4/08 Marc Millwee 4/08 Gary Gilleland 4/08 Bill Richard 4/09 Chance Turpin 4/10

“Easter spells out beauty, the rare beauty of new life.” S.D. Gordon

Hidden Employee Numbers Sorry, Bryce Davis and Kim Sokolosky did not find their

employee numbers in the last issue.

You could be the next winner of a $10 Logo Room credit.

If you find your employee number in this edition, call Brittany Hicks at Ext. 4335. Please use your credit

before the next payday if possible.