Propane Pre-Buy – Coming Soon

Posted on: July 1, 2025 By: hcarter@consolidated.coop

Propane Pre-Buy opens on August 15!

Buy your propane in advance to save! We are excited to offer pre-buy to all of our propane members for the 2025-2026 heating season.

To keep costs down, we will not send out pre-buy letters in the mail this year, but we will send program information via email and send you a postcard when the season is opening. If you have participated in this program before, we will send your past two year’s pre-buy use in the email we send to help you order, or you can contact us to request the information.

On August 15, we will open up an order form right here on our website.

What is Propane Pre-Buy?

Each year, our team reserves a set amount of propane in bulk before demand and rates shoot up for the winter. This allows us to offer a lower rate to members who purchase their propane before heating season begins.

What if the price goes down during heating season?

We’ll price match! While very rare, it is possible for our propane market rate to drop below our pre-buy rate during the pre-buy season (October-March). If this happens, we will match the price and deliver your gallons at a lower rate.

How much can I order?

Any amount up to 5,000 gallons. We do not have a minimum purchase to participate in pre-buy. However, please note that there is a $50 fee for propane deliveries of fewer than 200 gallons. If you pre-buy fewer than 200 gallons, please plan to add some market-rate gallons to your delivery to avoid the delivery fee.

Do I have to switch to keep-full delivery to participate?

Nope! You will stay on your current delivery type (will-call or keep-full) unless you contact us and request a change. If you are on will-call, please remember to contact us to schedule a refill when your tank reaches 30% capacity.

Home Energy Audits – 50% off!

Posted on: July 1, 2025 By: hcarter@consolidated.coop

We are offering 50% off our in-person home energy audits to help you save this summer! Our energy audits are usually $25, but you will only pay $12.50 for an audit if you call to book between now and July 31.

During a Home Energy Audit, our expert Home Energy Advisor, Roger, will come to your home with special equipment to help you identify areas where you can make simple, attainable changes to save energy. He’ll check things like windows, insulation, and lighting to find energy losses and give you practical advice and recommendations to help you save.

Learn more about Roger and the energy audit process in July’s Ohio Cooperative Living.

Take Action – Get Reimbursed!

As a not-for-profit cooperative, we want to help our members save on energy. So, if you show us that you acted on Roger’s suggestions, we’ll reimburse you for the cost of your audit! Just reach back out with a photo or receipt that shows how you made your home more efficient based on the advice you received during your audit.

Fill out the form below, call us at 800-421-5863 or email service@consolidated.coop by July 31 to learn more and book your half-price audit today!

Energy Advising

  • This field is for validation purposes and should be left unchanged.

2025 Trustee Election Results

Posted on: June 24, 2025 By: hcarter@consolidated.coop

Districts 1, 2, and 3.

Voting for our 2025 Trustee Elections closed on Friday, May 16. Results were officially announced at our annual meeting on June 24.

Election Results

District 1: Doug Loudenslager (Nominees: Kent Kramer and Doug Loudenslager). 

District 2: Megan Forman-Karbler (unopposed).  

District 3: Tim Bachelder (unopposed).

Our elections in Districts 2 and 3 were uncontested this year. This can occur when there are no new qualified candidates nominated from a district, when there is only one qualified nominee, or when nominated candidates opt not to run.

Visit our Trustee Page to find your district and learn more about our board.

2025 Election Timeline

February 24 (COMPLETED): Nomination ballots mailed/sent digitally to members in districts 1, 2, and 3. Digital ballots open at 7 p.m.

March 10 (COMPLETED): Nomination ballots must be postmarked by March 10, or submitted online by 4:30 p.m.

March 18 (COMPLETED): Nomination ballots will be counted.

April 25 (COMPLETED): Election ballots mailed/sent digitally to members in districts 1, 2, and 3.

May 16 (COMPLETED): Election ballots must be postmarked by May 16, or submitted online by 4:30 p.m.

June 10 (COMPLETED): Election ballots will be counted.

June 24 (COMPLETED): Consolidated’s annual meeting – results will be announced.

Why should I participate in elections?

As a Consolidated member, you have the right and responsibility to participate in our trustee elections and select a representative who will act in your community’s best interests.

Our trustees set the path for Consolidated’s future, and they have the final say on all strategic and budgetary decisions. They are committed to making decisions in the best interests of their districts and Consolidated’s membership as a whole, while ensuring that our co-op stays true to our founding principles.

Democratic Member Control is one of the seven guiding principles of all co-ops – it reminds us that cooperative employees are accountable to our trustees, and our trustees are accountable to our members.

Beat the heat!

Posted on: June 20, 2025 By: hcarter@consolidated.coop

Our service area expecting some serious high temperatures over the next week! Keep reading for important information about managing hot weather and energy use, or visit ready.gov/heat for important heat safety information.

Staying Cool and Saving Energy

As temperatures rise, most people find themselves using more energy to keep their homes cool. Check out the tips below to beat the heat while saving energy, and check out our Energy Efficiency page for more tools and resources.

  • Sunlight adds unwanted heat to your home; make sure that your blinds or curtains are closed during the heat of the day.
  • Fans cool people, not rooms. Leaving a fan on will not bring down the temperature of your home, so make sure to turn off fans when you are no longer using them.
  • Cook with a crock pot or grill. Your oven and stove can add unwanted heat to your home, causing your air conditioner to work harder and use more energy.
  • Make sure to seal any air leaks around doors or windows with caulk and weather stripping to keep warm air out and cool air in.

Severe Weather

Hot temperatures can come with the risk of severe storms. Make sure you and your family have a plan and know how to stay safe if storm damage leads to outages. Visit our Outage Safety page to sign up for Outage Alerts, review important safety information, and more!

Peak Alerts

During extreme temperatures, you might here people talking about peak alerts. Peak alerts occur when demand for electricity is reaching a new high, or “peak,” which can increase the cost that electric providers have to pay for the energy that they deliver to you. When that cost goes up, so do your energy bills.

To avoid a price increase, we ask our members to voluntarily reduce their electricity use during times of extreme demand. Make sure to turn off unused lights and appliances, and hold off on using large appliances like your dryer or dishwasher until the weather cools down in the evening. Follow this link to learn more about peak alerts.

Reliability

This summer, Ohio is at a low risk for rolling blackouts, but that doesn’t mean they aren’t possible during times of extreme weather. Learn more about rolling blackouts and grid reliability on our Energy Policy Resources page.

Key Account Spotlight: Groovy Plants Ranch

Posted on: June 19, 2025 By: hcarter@consolidated.coop

Groovy Plants Ranch is a family-owned greenhouse in Marengo. They grow thousands of plants each year, and they specialize in providing “unique and intriguing botanical oddities.”

Groovy Plants Ranch is on a mission to become an eternally inviting plant destination. Their team embraces individuals across every skill level, striving to ensure that their journey is inspirational and supportive. They share that they work to advance the lifestyle of growing plants, generation to generation, by cultivating trust, nurturing knowledge, and delivering consistently outstanding experiences.

Customer service is a priority at Groovy Plants Ranch, and they are focused on helping their customers succeed. Together, their team has over 100 years of horticulture experience, and they love to share their knowledge with others. They even offer a DIY “Potter’s Saloon” where customers can pot the plants they buy while team members are nearby to help.

The Groovy Plants Ranch team is proud of the role they play in bringing people from all over the state to Marengo. They share that they love to help their fellow local organizations thrive by recommending them to visiting out-of-towners. They also support their community by providing donations and in-kind gifts to local non-profits.

In addition to their greenhouse setup, they also offer classes and events at their location, including everything from crafts to yoga.

Check out the links below to learn more, view their event schedule, and find helpful resources that can help you get the most out of your visit:

Website: https://Groovyplantsranch.com

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/groovyplantsranch

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/groovyplantsranch

Groovy Plants Team holding plants

Annual Meeting

Posted on: June 17, 2025 By: hcarter@consolidated.coop

You are invited to join us for our annual meeting on Tuesday, June 24! The event will begin at 1 p.m. at our Delaware location: 4993, State Route 921, Delaware, Ohio.

This business-only meeting will cover key information from our annual report, covered in June’s edition of Ohio Cooperative Living magazine. Our trustees and staff will be present to take you through a recap of important financial and operational information, and some projections for where we are heading next.

All Consolidated members are welcome to join us!

2025 Electric Rate Adjustment

Posted on: May 27, 2025 By: hcarter@consolidated.coop

In alignment with our recent cost-of-service–study, member feedback, and input from our trustees and other experts, we are implementing a 2.1% average overall rate increase for all electric members. Please read through the information below to learn more about the change and the reasons why it is necessary. 

The following change is going into effect in June, 2025: 

  1. We are enacting a 2.1% average overall increase across all our electric rate classes. This means that each member will see an average of a 2.1% increase in their annual electric costs. The change goes into effect in June, meaning it will be reflected on the bill you receive in July.
  1. The portion of the rate that was adjusted for each rate class varies. Please visit the Documents section of your Consolidated SmartHub account to see our individual rate sheets and schedule of charges. The rate sheets for this change are labeled “Effective 6-1-2025.”

Why is Consolidated raising its electric rates?

The costs that we pay for the electricity we deliver to you and the infrastructure in our distribution system have seen substantial increases over the past few years. Our overall operating expenses have increased by 35% since 2020. In addition, the cost of our frequently purchased, necessary supplies and equipment increased by an average of 94% in the years leading up to our cost-of-service-study.

In 2023, we initiated our cost-of-service study with expert third-party consultants to address these cost changes and assess the financial health of our cooperative. While working with consultants, our trustees, and the financial experts on our team, it became clear that we would need to increase our electric rate – either all at once, or gradually over time. 

Member Feedback and Our Rate Adjustment Plan

As a not-for-profit cooperative, we are committed to operating in the best interests of our members. After our cost-of-service study, we sent out a rate adjustment survey to all our members to get feedback on how we could best implement the necessary changes.

We used your feedback on the survey to create our rate adjustment plan with our board of trustees. Over 82 percent of responding members expressed a preference for smaller, more frequent rate adjustments rather than delaying and implementing larger increases later. We created a plan to implement small, approximately 2% changes from year to year to help get our rates to a sustainable level while creating a smoother transition for our members.

Is Consolidated changing rates to increase profits?

No. Because we are a not-for-profit cooperative, we return all our margins to our members through Capital Credits. This increase is designed only to cover the rising costs that we have to pay to continue providing you with safe, reliable electricity.

What is a “Service Availability Charge” and why is it on my bill?

Our “Service Availability Charge” is the monthly fee that all Consolidated members pay to have access to our electric service. It is the same each month and it does not change based on consumption. This charge is necessary for us to provide electric service to you, and it plays an important role in keeping rates steadier overall. – The revenue from this charge helps cover fixed costs, including maintaining the system, updating equipment, and managing vegetation. All of this supports reliability and helps prevent costly outages and repairs.

Our reliability remains strong, and we have consistently stayed below state and national SAIDI medians over the past ten years. SAIDI (System Average Interruption Duration Index) represents the total number of minutes of service interruption the average member or customer experiences from their utility provider.

What is the Generation & Transmission (G&T) charge on my bill, and why does it change from month to month?

The G&T Charge is a pass-through charge that covers the costs of producing and transmitting the electricity that we distribute to you. It changes from month to month depending on the costs for things like fuel and transmission equipment. Generally, this cost has been on the rise in recent years due to increased fuel costs and demand, supply chain issues, and increasingly challenging government policies that make generation more expensive.

How do Consolidated’s rates and charges compare to other providers?

Population density makes a big impact on an electric provider’s rates and monthly charges. Larger, investor-owned utilities that cover mostly urban and suburban areas serve more members per mile of line than cooperatives like us who cover a lot of rural territory. When each mile of line in a distribution system serves more people, each person can pay a smaller portion of the maintenance, upgrade, and repair costs.

As a cooperative, we are proud of the role we play in helping our members thrive in rural areas by providing high quality services that might otherwise only be available in cities. Cooperatives like us were founded to serve rural areas when investor-owned utilities were not willing to take on the additional costs. While some costs are unavoidable because of the locations we serve, our rates remain comparable because we are a not-for-profit and do not pad our rates to line the pockets of investors. Our rates and charges reflect the costs we pay to provide you with safe, reliable electricity, and we return any excess to our members through capital credits.

What happens during a cost-of-service-study?

While we have a skilled financial team and trustees who are always looking to maximize the value we provide to members, we brought in third-party experts to ensure objectivity and help our leadership determine the best path forward. Our consultants follow standards set by the National Association of Regulatory Utility Commissioners (NARUC) while they carefully evaluate everything from equipment costs to community growth.

The focus of this study was to ensure fairness to our members while taking steps to maintain Consolidated’s good financial health. We worked with our consultants to identify the necessary and appropriate changes to our rate structure, and we are moving forward with our trustees’ full approval.

How does energy policy impact rates?

While costs are rising for goods and services of all kinds, the energy world has become an increasingly challenging place. As supply chain issues and overreaching regulations have costs up, we are joining forces with cooperatives from across the nation to advocate for energy policies that support reliable, affordable energy.

Learn more about these issues and how you can speak up for your community here.

What resources does Consolidated provide to help members as costs are rising?

As a not-for-profit cooperative, we offer many programs and resources designed to help our members become more efficient and save money. Check out some of our programs below, and please get in touch with us if you have questions:

  • High-Use Emails – Our high-use system alerts members when they have a higher energy bill than usual. Each email contains a custom video designed to help you understand why your energy use may have changed and find ways to use less in the future. Make sure the email address on your account is up to date so we can send you this helpful information.
  • Energy use tracking through Consolidated SmartHub – Set goals and track your energy use from month to month to make your home more efficient!
  • Home Energy Audits – Contact us to book an appointment for an in-person audit of your home’s energy efficiency with an expert from our team.
  • Energy Resource Center – Our free, online Energy Resource Center offers calculators and educational materials designed to help you become more efficient. You can get custom tips for your home and compare the costs and energy use of different heating options, appliances, lighting, and more.
  • Rebate Program – We offer rebates on multiple energy-efficient home upgrades to help you save while making your home more energy efficient.
  • Budget Billing – Budget Billing helps even out your electric costs throughout the year so that you are budgeting for a similar amount each month, even when the weather and your energy use change.
  • InControl Prepay – Stay InControl of your electric use by paying for electricity as you use it, instead of paying a lump sum each month.

What is Consolidated doing to reduce costs during this time?

Our trustees and teams are always looking for ways to improve our cooperative’s efficiency and effectiveness.

  • We have a robust vegetation management program that helps us reduce costly outages and system damage.
  • We invest in technology like our Advanced Metering Infrastructure that increases efficiency and improves the longevity of our system.
  • We ensure that all our teams are well-trained to work safely and efficiently.
  • We are committed to supporting community growth by creating relationships with prospective businesses and developers, creating franchise agreements, and working closely with our local community leaders. When our community grows, the costs to provide power can be shared among more people and businesses, making it less expensive for everyone.
  • We advocate for energy policy that supports reliable, affordable electricity. We join forces with co-ops on the state and national levels to speak up, and we encourage our members to join us through programs like America’s Electric Cooperatives PAC or Voices for Cooperative Power here.
  • We are saving printing costs and trees by making more of our processes digital. For instance, our recent efforts to help more members switch to Paperless Billing will help Consolidated save over $27,000 a year on printing and mailing.

Spring Fiber Line Burial

Posted on: May 16, 2025 By: hcarter@consolidated.coop

May Update: Thank you for your patience this spring as we worked to bury lines from temporary winter drops! The rainy weather caused some delays, but we are approaching the end of the burial process for all of our members. If you have any questions about your line burial or scheduling, please give our fiber scheduling team a call at 740-362-4000, option 4.

Temporary Drops – What You Need to Know

In order to continue connecting members throughout the winter when the ground is frozen, sometimes our crews create temporary drops, meaning they lay the line on top of the ground to connect it to your home. If you received a temporary drop this winter, please practice caution around the fiber line until our crews come out to bury it.

Our fiber team makes calls out to impacted members before coming out to bury the line, so be on the lookout for a call from us! These calls are designed to give you a heads up and help you remember to mark any private underground utility lines like irrigation systems or dog fences. We will work with OUPS to mark public utilities, but private utilities are the responsibility of each homeowner.

We are focused on efficiency as we work through these drops, because we understand the inconvenience of having a line in your yard as the weather warms up. However, weather has a significant impact on our ability to bury lines safely and efficiently. Mud not only creates safety hazards, but also increases the risk of damaging surrounding landscaping. To keep our teams and members safe and to help protect lawns while we work, every day of rain pushes our schedule back by an estimated three+ days.

While the line is in your yard, it is your responsibility to keep it safe. Please work around the line and not over it, especially if you are mowing or driving in the area. If you have questions, or if the line is creating a safety hazard for you or your household, please reach out to us at 800-421-5863.

Energy Policy Resources

Posted on: May 5, 2025 By: hcarter@consolidated.coop

Reliability and Affordability Concerns

For almost 90 years, our mission has been to deliver safe, reliable, and environmentally responsible electricity to our members at stable and affordable rates. Our members count on us to deliver their power 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, 365 days a year – our communities and livelihoods depend on it. But, for the first time in our history, that reliability is in jeopardy.

Buckeye Power, our generation and transmission provider, generates enough power for all 400,000 cooperative members in Ohio. However, we depend on the larger grid to get that power to our members, and the grid’s ability to balance supply and demand in our region and across the nation is increasingly at risk. 

Here are a few of the reasons why the risks to reliable, affordable energy are growing:

  • Demand for electricity is higher than it has ever been, and it continues to rise. The Energy Information Administration (EIA) projects that U.S. power demand will reach its highest levels ever in 2024 and 2025.
  • The overall supply of reliable electricity is down because of the rapid retirement of coal and nuclear plants.
  • Intermittent sources of energy like wind and solar power have come online, but they have not filled the gap and they are not always available.
  • Unreasonable regulations are creating unnecessarily high costs while providing minimal environmental benefits.

2025 – Summer Reliability

In May and November of each year, The North American Electric Reliability Corporation (NERC) publishes a grid reliability assessment. This summer, our region’s grid operator – PJM Interconnection – was placed at a low risk for insufficient reserves and rolling blackouts. This is good news, as PJM had been placed at an elevated risk in recent years, and Ohio just narrowly avoided rolling blackouts in December of 2022.

While this report was positive for the summer, it does not mean that reliability concerns are coming to an end. Learn more in this brief article from Ohio’s Electric Cooperatives, or check out NERC’s full Summer Reliability Assessment.

What can we do about it? 

Energy Conservation

During times of extreme demand (like during a cold snap), you may hear about “peak alerts” or “peak demand.” A “peak alert” occurs when a utility provider is close to demanding more electric power than they have ever used before. When demand reaches a new peak, it also sets a new, higher price that we have to pay for electricity.

Now more than ever, it is important for us all to try and safely conserve power during times when demand is high – not just to avoid rising costs, but also to help avoid the need for rolling blackouts. Conservation during peak times can be as simple as lowering your thermostat by a few degrees, or turning off unused appliances and electronics. Learn more about peak alerts here.

Political Action

Consolidated leaders attend events in Washington, D.C. and at our Ohio statehouse to meet with policy makers and speak up for the good of our members. You can join us in advocating for common-sense energy policy. Check out America’s Electric Cooperatives PAC and Voices for Cooperative Power to learn more about how you can get involved and speak up for cooperative members!

America’s Electric Cooperatives PAC

The National Rural Electric Cooperatives Association (NRECA) has renamed its political action committee: The program once known as “ACRE” is now America’s Electric Cooperatives PAC.  

This political action committee (PAC) was founded in 1966 to support political candidates who speak up for and protect the interests of electric co-ops and their member-owners. Thousands of co-op members, employees, and directors from across our nation contribute to the PAC.   

PAC accepts contributions on a monthly basis, and the average contributor gives about $65 per year. When everyone’s individual PAC contribution comes together, it builds our collective strength as cooperatives across the nation. This strength and recognition on the national level is key as decarbonization and electrification policies have threatened cooperatives’ ability to deliver power to their members.   

If you would like to be a part of this national movement, click here to make a donation, or give us a call at 800-421-5863 for help.   

Voices for Cooperative Power

Join us in speaking up for reliable, affordable electricity! Voices for Cooperative Power (VCP) is a network of rural electric cooperative members who work together to promote policies that help cooperatives thrive. VCP makes it easy to be an advocate by empowering you to share your story, connecting you with opportunities to use your voice, and keeping you informed about important issues and policies.   

You can choose your level of involvement – whether you use the information they provide to be an informed voter, or you take advantage of opportunities to contact legislators and speak up for cooperatives. Learn more about VCP at voicesforcooperativepower.com or get in touch with us at Consolidated for help.   

Resources

Key Terms and Organizations

Here is a short list of some of the key terms and organizations that you will read about while researching this topic. Click or tap the link in each point to learn more or visit the organization’s website.

The Electric Grid: The complex, interconnected system that transports electricity from power plants through substations, transformers, transmission lines, and the distribution lines that deliver energy to consumers. Learn more about the electric grid.

PJM: PJM Interconnection – a regional transmission organization that ensures reliability and coordinates the movement of electricity in Ohio and 12 surrounding states.

NERC: The North American Electric Reliability Corporation – a not-for-profit, international authority designed to protect the reliability and security of the electric grid.   

NRECA: America’s Electric Cooperatives – the national organization designed to promote, support, and protect the best interests of electric cooperatives and their members.   

OEC: Ohio’s Electric Cooperatives – the statewide organization designed to promote, support, and protect the best interests of electric cooperatives and their members in Ohio.

EPA: The United States Environmental Protection Agency – The EPA was founded to study environmental issues, provide information, and develop and enforce environmental standards and regulations in America.   

Light up your life.