Glenn Pritchard, a three-year veteran of the Glasgow Electric Plant Board of Directors, listens during an earlier meeting. He was appointed as the board’s newest chairperson on Tuesday, May 24, 2022.
(WCLU NEWS FILE PHOTO)
Story by Angela Briggs, special to WCLU News
GLASGOW — The Glasgow Electric Plant Board of Directors welcomed two new board members at its latest meeting and named a new chairperson.
The Glasgow City Council approved Beau Jones and Troy Stephens to the board, which were put forth by Glasgow Mayor Harold Armstrong. The council had struck down earlier suggestions made by the mayor. The board remains without one member on its five-person board.
Mark Haines, the former board chairperson, resigned from the board after last week’s meeting. He said he planned to move to Tennessee to be closer to his children and grandchildren.
Glenn Pritchard, a three year veteran of the board, was suggested by Haines to become the newest chairperson. He said he looks forward to the new role.
“I’ve got some ideas,” Pritchard said. “I definitely want to have transparency, and I want to have good communication between the board members and the superintendent and his team.”
Jones was named the newest secretary of the board.
Dave Puskula, GEPB superintendent, said the fuel cost adjustment for the plant increased again for the coming month. This June’s projection is nearly 70 percent higher than the same time over the last three years. The steep jump is due to the difference in gas prices of today from those during the pandemic.
“But now we’re comparing elevated fuel costs to low fuel costs. That’s why there’s such a gap,” Puskula said. “There’s still a 70 percent difference in your average, which is not great. But if you looked at it from a more normal, 10-year average, that gap would be smaller.”
The Tennessee Valley Authority’s power production cost is dependent in part on the cost of natural gas and the market value of fuel and other determinants. July’s fuel adjustment cost is expected to increase too, but TVA expects it to decrease later this summer.
There were 19 power outages during April, which is up from eight the same time last year. Puskula said animals caused most of the outages. Squirrel guards prevent some damage but do little to remedy bird problems, he said.
Since 2020, the Glasgow EPB has given $4,500 each month to Community Relief Fund, which goes toward electric bill assistance. Another group is vying for some of the money.
Wade Copas, a representative of Bridge Kentucky, explained to the board how his entity offers utility assistance, too. The group is a non-profit in Glasgow. They provide about $800 each month toward GEPB customers for electric bill assistance.
Stacy Janes, CRF director, said the group evaluates assistance requests and maintains a record of how much assistance is provided each month.
Both representatives echoed the apparent need in the community for utility assistance, and they had referred people to each other’s organizations.
The board of directors decided to continue sending their contribution to CRF. They urged Bridge Kentucky to refer utility assistance requests to the CRF.
In other business, the GEPB’s lobby remains closed to the public. A renovation was put on hold sometime over the last few weeks. Renovation cost estimates gathered from bids were much higher than the plant wanted to spend.
A reduced version of the renovations – including safety and security updates – is expected to occur sometime in the future.
