Getting Back to Basics

There’s a phrase in the building industry, "re-pointing the foundation," which means that sometimes it’s necessary to strengthen your basic understanding of something. That’s what 25 individuals from NEPPA member utilities did on Thursday, Oct. 20, when they attended a day-long program on Electric Utility Basics at the Shrewsbury (Mass.) Town Hall. Shrewsbury Electric & Cable Operations (SELCO) hosted the event.

The program featured four speakers who gave an overview of the electric industry in New England and the operation of consumer-owned utilities.

Leading off was Patrick Hyland, NEPPA executive director, who spoke about power suppliers and regional institutions, as well as deregulation and competitive wholesale power markets. Some of the questions he answered were, "Where does electric power come from in New England?" "What is electric deregulation, and how do power markets operate?" and "What do NEPOOL, FERC, NERC and ISO-NE mean?"

Next up was Steve Socoby, NEPPA technical trainer. With more than 35 years of line experience, Steve was in a good position to explain how utilities distribute electricity. He used photographs and drawings to identify poles, wires, transformers, substations and overhead and underground systems.

Vinnie Cameron, Jr., general manager of the Reading Municipal Light Department, then talked about the cost of electric service, clarifying how costs are determined and rates calculated, what demand charges are and how to understand an electric bill.

The final speaker, Brian Choquette, assistant manager of the Hudson Light and Power Department, showed in detail the relationships among the various departments of an electric utility. He took the audience through a step-by-step process of how those departments work with each other to complete a job for a customer.

Pat, Steve, Vinnie and Brian covered different topics, but each one translated very technical information into understandable language, which pleased both new and experienced attendees alike. "It was very informative," said Sue Curll, billing coordinator at the Sterling (Mass.) Municipal Light Department. "I liked that everything was explained in layman’s terms."

The program was videotaped by Bill Nay and John McDonald of the Shrewsbury Media Connection, and DVD copies will be distributed to program participants as well as NEPPA utilities that could not be represented that day.