Rate Innovation for Electric Cooperatives & Munis

July 13-14, 2023 | Online :: Central Time

0723-coop-rate-innovation

“EUCI’s rate innovation conference offered very valuable information for cooperatives. Learning new ways to structure rates was refreshing and helpful to proactively plan communications strategies.” Director of Business Development & Communications, Cloverland Electric Cooperative

“EUCI conferences always contain great and timely topics. Presenters are always well prepared and Grant Neptune does a fantastic job in facilitating the training; whether it be in person or online.” Pricing & Rates Supervisor, Nebraska Public Power District

Electric Cooperatives are facing numerous challenges in meeting customer needs while responding to changing utility priorities. How are your industry colleagues adapting to the push for efficient electrification and the spreading use of renewable customer-site generation and electric vehicle charging? Register now for the 3^rd Annual Rate Innovation for Electric Cooperatives Conference to meet and engage with industry leaders on new rate designs that achieve full cost recovery and recognize the need for efficient pricing, matching incremental cost with incremental value. Attendees will come away with a deeper understanding of rate design issues and best practices for implementation.

Learning Outcomes

• Assess how electric cooperatives are meeting the challenge of diversifying customer needs with rate innovations
• Review trends in power procurement pricing
• Discover how co-ops are confronting the challenges associated with efficient electrification using pricing techniques
• Participate in panel discussions with rate experts to deepen your understanding of rate design issues
• Review analysis behind implementation of demand charges for electrification
• Learn about the outcomes of rate initiatives in terms of customer participation and price response
• Explore new offerings for the customers of tomorrow including EV rates, demand charges and solar
• Discuss EV loads for new customers, such as large industrial farms

Thursday, July 13, 2023 : Central Time

 

1:00 – 1:15 p.m. :: Opening Announcements

1:15 – 4:45 p.m. :: Session I: Facilitating Rate Innovation Upstream

Includes short breaks – 15 minutes total

How can cooperatives and their G&Ts collaborate to facilitate introducing the time variation in rates necessary to support changing customer preferences? If electric vehicle charging suggests a need for off-peak pricing or customers with distributed energy want time-varying pricing, it becomes necessary to modify the cooperative-G&T pricing arrangements. See how current practitioners are approaching this problem.

Session I Speakers

Connecting Coops to Wholesale Markets at Tri-State G&T

Reg Rudolph will kick off this online event, providing a welcome from TriState G&T. He will give a “state of the union” at this halfway point through 2023.

Reg Rudolph, Chief Energy Innovations Officer, Tri-State Generation & Transmission Association, Inc.

 

Customer Awareness of Billing and Rates: New Developments

In this session, Jason McGrade will dive into residential consumers’ awareness and understanding of today’s electric rate plans. This session will provide a detailed look at what today’s consumers know, think and feel about their monthly electric bills and their electric rate plan options. Based on findings from a recent SECC report, this session will present consumers’ attitudes toward electric bills, comprehension of the factors that impact bills, understanding of common rate options and more.

Jason McGrade, Deputy Director, Smart Energy Consumer Collaborative (SECC)

 

Linking Customers to the Generation Market While Managing Risk

This session will describe CIPCO’s “three-party rate design” structure and explain its motivation. It will also discuss emerging unique member-consumers and illustrate how full-requirements contracts can incorporate customized solutions. You will hear how the risks of variable price contracting can be managed. And there will be a discussion on upcoming variable pricing ideas to meet emerging customer needs.

Kendra Graves, Vice President of Portfolio Strategy & Planning, Central Iowa Power Cooperative

 

Session I Panel Discussion: Wholesale-Retail Pricing Connections

 

Friday, July 14, 2023 : Central Time

 

9:00 a.m. – 12:15 p.m. :: Session II: Rate Design Solutions  

Includes short breaks – 15 minutes total

This session focuses on the rate design approaches that various utilities have adopted to deal with the challenges posed by a diversifying customer base. The rate designers will discuss how the problem of balancing revenue recovery with pricing efficiency – the need for price to approximate incremental cost – gets resolved to meet a variety of emerging customer needs.

Session II Speakers

Combining TOU Pricing and Demand Billing to Align Revenue with Cost

Andy Carter, Member Engagement Manager, Empire Electric Association

Ginny Johnson, Finance Manager, Empire Electric Association

Chris Snyder, Member Services Manager, Empire Electric Association

 

Residential On-Peak Demand Charge, Impact on Customers & the System

Matt Porth, Manager, Energy Services and Govt Relations Manager, Mid-Carolina Electric Cooperative

 

Lessons from Dynamic Pricing at Xcel Energy

Steve Wishart, Director of Pricing & Analysis, Xcel

Session II: Panel: Setting Prices to Balance Competing Priorities

12:15 – 1:00 p.m. :: Lunch Break

1:00 – 4:30 p.m. :: Session III: Facilitating Beneficial Electrification with Pricing

Includes short breaks – 15 minutes total

If electrification is indeed to be beneficial, how do we support customers’ planning and initiatives without inadvertently subsidizing electricity versus other energy sources, or electricity versus other customer purchases? Will support for electrification mean opposing energy efficiency and conservation? How should retail pricing thread this needle? This session will take up this pricing challenge.

Session III Speakers:

Great Impacts of Electrification and Who Pays for It

Allison Hamilton, Director, Markets & Rates, NRECA

 

Linking Supply Contracts to Rate Design to Advance Electrification

David Stowe, Senior Rate Engineer, CORE Electric Cooperative

 

Sustainable Rate Design for a Clean Energy Future

Current models of electric rate design work well to maintain stable electric rates so long as the sales of electricity and/or the investment in capital associated with those sales rises at a faster rate than the costs associated with operating the utility.  In today’s world of high inflation, rising interest rates, and increasing focus on self-generation and storage, how can the electric grid operator maintain sufficient revenue to assure a reliable, resilient electric grid? Join us for a forward-looking discussion on how electric utilities can obtain both environmental and financial sustainability in a clean energy future.  

Bryan Hannegan, President and CEO, Holy Cross Energy

 

Session III: Panel Discussion: Pricing Pitfalls in Electrification

4:30 p.m. :: Conference Concludes

Foundations of Innovative Rate Design

Thursday, July 13, 2023 : Central Time

Overview

This workshop is designed to enable you to acquire (or reacquire) the costing and pricing information that will help you to be up to speed on current rate design and facilitate your participation in and enjoyment of the conference presentations. We will cover the key concepts in the changing world of costing and pricing that support innovative rate design initiatives being explored in cooperatives working to meet the pricing challenges that their members are posing.

Learning Outcomes

• Review briefly traditional costing and pricing methods
• Discuss emerging retail rate design challenges for utilities
• Explore use of marginal cost-based/market-based energy pricing
• Reconsider distribution cost recovery methods
• Discuss pricing for electric vehicle (EV) charging and distributed energy resources (DERs)
• Review pricing issues related to efficient electrification

Agenda

 

9:00 – 9:15 a.m. :: Opening Announcements

9:15 – 10:15 a.m. :: Traditional vs. Innovative Costing and Pricing

Embedded costs and traditional rate designs

• The basics
• The challenges

Incorporating marginal costs into rate design

• Marginal costs
• Applications

10:15 – 10:30 a.m. :: Break

10:30 a.m. – 12:00 p.m. :: Emerging Challenges

• Residential and Public Electric Vehicle Charging
• DER Pricing Alternatives
• Considerations in Pricing for Efficient Electrification

12:00 p.m. :: Workshop Adjourns

Workshop Instructor

Bruce R. Chapman, Vice President, Christensen Associates Energy Consulting

Mr. Chapman assists clients in the electricity and natural gas industries to improve their costing and pricing capabilities. Mr. Chapman advises clients in such areas of expertise as: cost-of-service analysis and rate design based upon both established regulatory and market-based principles; innovative rate design including demand response products, renewables pricing, fixed billing, and other market-based retail pricing products; load forecasting and load research analysis. Additionally, he has supervised the development of software required for the implementation and support of innovative retail products.

Andy Carter, Member Engagement Manager, Empire Electric Association, Inc.

A team-oriented leader with over 20 years of energy industry experience in customer service, marketing, and sales for gas and electric distribution companies and wholesale natural gas producers. Andy is responsible for all facets of member communication and directs his rural electric cooperative team in providing excellent member service and energy solutions that allow members to take advantage of the rapidly changing energy industry.

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Bryan Hannegan, President and CEO, Holy Cross Energy

Prior to joining Holy Cross in July 2017, Bryan was an Associate Laboratory Director at the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL), where he co-founded the US Department of Energy’s Grid Modernization Initiative and started up the Energy Systems Integration Facility (ESIF), a unique “distribution grid in a box” enabling utilities, entrepreneurs and consumers to work together on cleaner, more affordable and more reliable energy systems. Earlier in his career, Bryan held senior leadership roles at the Electric Power Research Institute, the White House Council on Environmental Quality, and the US Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources. Holy Cross Energy is a not-for-profit, member-owned electric cooperative utility providing electricity and energy products and services to more than 42,000 customers in Western Colorado.

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Kendra A. Graves, Vice President of Portfolio Strategy & Planning, Central Iowa Power Cooperative

In this role, Kendra is responsible for power supply planning and leading the organization through an ongoing power supply transition. This has included the successful negotiation of several wind and solar power purchase agreements, power supply cost projections and impacts of resource adequacy in MISO’s changing market. In addition, Kendra and her team develop long-term load forecasts and support member distribution cooperatives with new load, rate design and wholesale power billing. Kendra, as part of the CIPCO leadership team, supports CIPCO’s planning goals and strategic decisions and recently collaborated with member cooperatives to develop a new wholesale power contract. Kendra holds a Bachelor of Science degree in mathematics and physics from South Dakota State University. CIPCO is a G&T in Cedar Rapids, Iowa.

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Allison Hamilton, Director, Markets & Rates, NRECA

Allison Hamilton is the Director, Markets and Rates in the Business and Technology Strategies group at the National Rural Electric Cooperative Association (NRECA).  Ms. Hamilton serves as the technical expert for NRECA staff and membership with respect to retail and wholesale rate structures and evolving energy services business models.  Prior to her position at NRECA, Ms. Hamilton worked for Pepco Holdings based in Washington D.C. for more than 13 years in energy trading and business strategy.  Before crossing over into the energy industry she spent several years as an equity analyst for an investment bank in Portland, Oregon.  Ms. Hamilton holds a liberal arts degree from Valparaiso University and an M.B.A. from Johns Hopkins.

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Ginny Johnson, Finance Manager, Empire Electric Association, Inc.

Ginny is a licensed CPA with a master’s degree in public accounting. Her nearly 20 years of accounting experience includes 9 years of rural electric cooperative experience.  Ginny is responsible for the financial condition of the cooperative, including ensuring that revenue recovered through rates is fair, equitable, and is adequate to meet or exceed the financial goals of the cooperative.

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Jason McGrade, Deputy Director, Smart Energy Consumer Collaborative

As Deputy Director of SECC, Jason plays a key role in producing SECC’s research reports and consumer education materials. Prior to joining SECC, Jason served as a Senior Program Manager for Touchstone Energy® Cooperatives. In this role, he drove strategic planning efforts, produced events and webinars, as well as leading market research and IT initiatives. He considers himself a lifelong learner and is always on the lookout for delicious local specialties when traveling.

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Reg Rudolph, Chief Energy Innovations Officer, Tri-State Generation & Transmission Association, Inc.

Reg joined Tri-State in January 2022 and is responsible for developing and implementing competitive energy services, managing beneficial electrification programs and overseeing member relations. Prior to Tri-State, he served as General Manager of San Isabel Electric Association, Inc. for 13 years and has more than 30 years of experience in the electric cooperative utility industry. Reg has a Master of Business Administration degree from Colorado State University and bachelor’s degrees in business administration and economics from North Dakota State University.

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Christopher Snyder, Member Services Manager, Empire Electric Association, Inc.

Chris is the core “team and culture builder” for EEA with 15 years of experience across a variety of organizations and industries.  Chris’ focus in any role is understanding and aligning the needs of the business, its people, and customers to deliver sustainable solutions for all. 

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 David Stowe, Senior Rate Engineer, CORE Electric Cooperative

David has worked in the fields of utility regulation, cost analysis and rate design for 30 years.  In that time, he has developed and analyzed more than 100 cost-of-service studies for some 40 different investor-owned and public electric utilities operating in the US and Canada. He worked as a utility consultant with Brubaker and Associates in Saint Louis, Missouri where he provided testimony regarding cost-of-service and rate design in rate proceedings in Colorado, Kansas, Missouri, Illinois, Michigan, Wisconsin, Oklahoma, Texas, Georgia and Florida.  He worked in the regulatory and rates departments of the Missouri Public Service Company (MoPub), the Missouri Public Service Commission (MoPSC), and the Kansas Corporation Commission (KCC).  He is a registered professional engineer.  He received his B.S. in Electrical and Computer Engineering from Kansas State University.  CORE Electric Cooperative is headquartered in Sedalia, Colorado.

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Steve Wishart, Director Pricing & Regulatory Analytics, Xcel Energy 

Steve Wishart has been with Xcel Energy for 18 years, working in resource planning, regulatory administration, and pricing, appearing as a witness in over 30 regulatory proceedings in five states.  Currently Steve is overseeing the pricing and rate analytics team for Public Service of Colorado.  He and his team are implementing default time of use rate for 1.3 million residential customers and 100,000 small customers.  

We will be using Microsoft Teams to facilitate your participation in the upcoming event. You do not need to have an existing Teams account in order to participate in the broadcast – the course will play in your browser and you will have the option of using a microphone to speak with the room and ask questions, or type any questions in via the chat window and our on-site representative will relay your question to the instructor.

• IMPORTANT NOTE: After November 30 you will not be able to join a Teams meeting using Internet Explorer 11. Microsoft recommends downloading and installing the Teams app if possible. You may also use the Edge browser or Chrome.
• You will receive a meeting invitation will include a link to join the meeting.
• Separate meeting invitations will be sent for the morning and afternoon sessions of the course.
  • You will need to join the appropriate meeting at the appropriate time.
• If you are using a microphone, please ensure that it is muted until such time as you need to ask a question.
• The remote meeting connection will be open approximately 30 minutes before the start of the course. We encourage you to connect as early as possible in case you experience any unforeseen problems.

Please Note: Confirmed speakers do not need to register and are encouraged to participate in all sessions of the event. If you are a speaker and have any questions please contact our offices at 1.303.770.8800

Please Note: This event is being conducted entirely online. All attendees will connect and attend from their computer, one connection per purchase. For details please see our FAQ

If you are unable to attend at the scheduled date and time, we make recordings available to all attendees for 7 days after the event

REGISTER NOW FOR THIS EVENT:

Rate Innovation for Electric Cooperatives & Munis

July 13-14, 2023 | Online

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RELATED WORKSHOPS:

Foundations of Innovative Rate Design

July 20

Individual remote connection(s) - $ 495.00 each
Volume pricing also available Individual attendee tickets can be mixed with ticket packs for complete flexibility
Pack of 5 attendees - $ 1980.00
Pack of 10 attendees - $ 3495.00
Pack of 20 attendees - $ 5940.00
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Your registration may be transferred to a member of your organization up to 24 hours in advance of the event. Cancellations must be received on or before June 09, 2023 in order to be refunded and will be subject to a US $195.00 processing fee per registrant. No refunds will be made after this date. Cancellations received after this date will create a credit of the tuition (less processing fee) good toward any other EUCI event. This credit will be good for six months from the cancellation date. In the event of non-attendance, all registration fees will be forfeited. In case of conference cancellation, EUCIs liability is limited to refund of the event registration fee only. For more information regarding administrative policies, such as complaints and refunds, please contact our offices at 303-770-8800

Credits

EUCI is accredited by the International Accreditors for Continuing Education and Training (IACET) and offers IACET CEUs for its learning events that comply with the ANSI/IACET Continuing Education and Training Standard. IACET is recognized internationally as a standard development organization and accrediting body that promotes quality of continuing education and training.

EUCI is authorized by IACET to offer 1.0 CEUs for this conference and 0.3 CEUs for the workshop.

Requirements for Successful Completion of Program

Participants must log in each day and be in attendance for the entirety of the course to be eligible for continuing education credit.

Instructional Methods

Case Studies, Panel Discussions and PowerPoint presentations

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Upon successful completion of this event, program participants interested in receiving CPE credits will receive a certificate of completion.

Conference CPE Credits: 12.0
Workshop CPE Credits: 3.5
There is no prerequisite for this Conference.
Program field of study: Specialized Knowledge
Program Level: Basic
Delivery Method: Group Internet Based
Advanced Preparation: None

EUCI is registered with the National Association of State Boards of Accountancy (NASBA) as a sponsor of continuing professional education on the National Registry of CPE Sponsors. State boards of accountancy have final authority on the acceptance of individual courses for CPE credit. Complaints regarding registered sponsors may be submitted to the National Registry of CPE Sponsors through its web site: www.nasbaregistry.org

 

Who Should Attend

This conference was developed for:

• Utility executives
• Corporate communication professionals
• Contact center management professionals
• Attorneys
• Regulatory affairs managers
• Pricing and load research managers
• Customer representatives and organizations
• Cost of service analysts
• Financial analysts
• Rate design, product development and customer strategy professionals