Eighty-five years ago, a group of progressive, hard-working individuals came together for a common goal – to bring reliable electricity to families and local businesses. Although much has changed during the past 85 years, our commitment to our members has not.
Our primary goal as an electric membership cooperative is to consistently provide reliable, affordable, safe and sustainable electricity. Cobb EMC has a diversified power supply portfolio that is well negotiated and competitive that supports the lowest possible rates to our members. Currently, our power comes from several different companies, two of which are electric cooperatives, Green Power EMC and Oglethorpe Power (a generation and transmission cooperative). Among these various companies, there are more than two dozen power supply purchase agreements in place to meet the power demands of our members for now and in the future.
Cobb EMC has a long and proud record of effectively managing our costs so that the electricity we provide to our members remains affordable. One of the most effective ways we’re able to keep our rates strong is with the help of dividends received from Gas South, our wholly-owned subsidiary. In fact, since 2021, Gas South dividends have helped us absorb more than $27 million in rising wholesale power costs rather than pass those costs along to you. This year, Cobb EMC members’ bills are $40 lower per month than the state average according to the Georgia Public Service Commission summer rate surey. Thanks to leadership planning, securing future power needs and operating efficiently, our board voted to return $15 million in excess revenue – known as capital credits – to members who received electricity from Cobb EMC in 2019 and/or 2020. Capital credits are your individual portion of the co-op’s profits. The amount you will receive is based on how much you paid for electricity during 2019 and/or 2020. Since 2013, we have given $43 million back to members in the form of a Wholesale Power Adjustment (WPA) credit on electric bills.
We work year-round to maintain and strengthen our system’s infrastructure and technology, ensuring members always have power they can rely on. According to the IEEE, Cobb EMC is ranked first in the nation for restoring outages quickly and first in the nation for providing reliable power.
At Cobb EMC, we’re also continually working to introduce programs that make your life easier. Throughout the past year, we have enhanced our outage map and outage communications tools, ensuring you’ll stay up to date thanks to new map features and the choice of text, email or phone outage notifications to best meet your individual needs.
We make safety a top priority and strive to keep our employees and the communities we serve safe and secure. Safely ensuring the power stays on for more than 200,000 members 24/7/365, through all types of conditions – from high heat and humidity to freezing temperatures – is quite a feat considering half of our 385 employees work outdoors daily around hazards including live power lines, sharp tools, heights and high voltages. Performing our job safely not only ensures the safety of our members and community, but it also saves on the costs associated with preventable injuries. Additionally, we’re proud to offer community education about electrical safety, scams and cybersecurity as part of our safety commitment.
At Cobb EMC, we’re keeping our members’ best interests in mind, and we remain steadfast in making strategic decisions about the energy and value-added services we provide. We are committed to going above and beyond to address your needs and look forward to another great year as your EMC.
Kevan Espy President and CEO David Tennant Board Chairman From Left: Kevan Espy, President and CEO, and David Tennant, Board Chairman
We focus on delivering reliable service to our members. We have a resilient energy grid, and we’re working every day to improve and maintain our infrastructure to provide perfect power. That means you experience fewer interruptions, and should the power go out, we get the lights back on as quickly as possible. How we’re working to get there:
• Drone pilot program: We leverage new drone technology to monitor the health of our poles and grid.
• Right-of-way maintenance: We trim approximately 400 miles of line in the right-of-way annually. This keeps branches off our power lines resulting in fewer interruptions.
Maintaining a resilient power grid means planning for the unpredictable. Beyond maintaining our lines, we review our disaster response plan annually to ensure should the worst happen, we’re ready to mobilize and restore power.
When Winter Storm Elliot struck our territory, our crews went straight to work in frigid temperatures restoring power to 4,800 members impacted by high winds and record cold temperatures. Our year-round
efforts to maintain our infrastructure resulted in minimal damage and faster restoration times.
We recognize that the future stability of the power grid is important to our members. We want to assure you that maintaining and enhancing the security of the electric grid is a top priority for us and the entire electric industry. In addition, we’re working to prevent outages and protect the reliability of our system from natural and man-made threats.
Our hope is that you have power whenever you need it, and if you do lose power, you can count on us to keep you informed.
This year, we worked hard to enhance our outage notification tools. Text “register” to 898-362 to enroll in outage text alerts, and visit cobbemc.com/OutageAlerts to enroll in email and voice notifications.
Reliability is more than just our job. It’s our purpose. Building and maintaining a resilient grid that our members can count on is our number one focus. If an outage occurs, you can count on us to respond, restore and keep you updated.
*According to the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers
Delivering on our promise to provide affordable, reliable and safe electricity requires purposeful planning with a disciplined focus on performance and financial strength and stability. We continue to work strategically with our wholesale power providers to keep the price of power low for members. Since 2021, Cobb EMC protected members from higher rates by absorbing more than $27 million in rising wholesale power costs with help from Gas South dividends. We plan carefully to provide competitive rates now and in the future.
Creating value for our members goes beyond the power bill. In working directly with our members through a series of focus groups, we identified opportunities to improve our service experiences.
Cobb EMC has continued to offer value-added programs to members including:
This year, we upgraded our rate tool to provide an easier way for members to determine the rate that best fits their unique energy use and budget. The Rate Selection Tool allows members to:
• Estimate how much energy may be consumed based on home size
• Learn key terms about energy use
• See a side-by-side comparison of all rates
• Get a sample bill amount
Gas South and Cobb EMC work together to save you money. As a member, Gas South offers special savings just for you on natural gas service, including no deposit, no connection fee and a permanent discount on everyday low rates.
And they don’t stop at savings. As part of Gas South’s purpose to “Be A Fuel For Good,” the company pledges 5% of its annual profits to support children in need, which means you’re getting service that you can feel good about.
Gas South, Cobb EMC’s wholly-owned subsidiary, helps the co-op remain financially strong by returning its profits, which in turn helps to keep electric rates low and reliability solid.
Gas South provides natural gas service to more than 425,000 residential, commercial, industrial and wholesale customers throughout the Southeast.
Our team at Cobb EMC is powered by purpose. In addition to providing reliable service at an affordable price, we’re committed to serving our community. Cobb EMC is proud to empower the next generation, whether that be through scholarships, workforce development or STEM education programs in schools.
We’re proud to partner with our local Chambers and economic development offices to support workforce development in the five counties we serve. We sponsor and participate in local initiatives such as Be Pro Be Proud Georgia to cultivate future leaders and help to build an educated and talented workforce right here in our community.
Serving our community is at the heart of what we do. We believe in investing in our neighborhoods where we live and work. Our employees regularly volunteer their time at local nonprofits. Many serve in leadership roles and on boards. Our employees also volunteer as mentors at two Partner-at-Large schools. At Cobb EMC, we exist to serve our members and our community. We’re your neighbor, your co-op and your community partner, and we’re proud to power your lives.
Our concern for community extends beyond the classroom to neighbors in need. Every billing cycle, participating Operation Round Up members round up their monthly bills to fund the Cobb EMC Foundation. Charitable organizations within Cobb EMC’s five-county service area use grants from the Foundation to provide outreach in our community.
We’re proud to share that
2022 we gave more than $902,000 through the Foundation.
The average estimated annual giving is only $6 per member account, and collectively it makes a big impact in our community. To sign up, visit cobbemc.com/foundation.
*As of 2022; **Awarded in 2022; †Since Cobb EMC Foundation inception in 2013; ‡Since last Annual Meeting in 2022
Cobb EMC is a leader in sustainability, and we’ve worked hard to strengthen our own operations while encouraging members to participate in a clean energy future. This year, we have expanded our solar energy portfolio up to 149 megawatts (MWAC) with projects in Clay County, Ga.
In all that we do to deliver reliable power, we also work to take care of our environment. We have set goals to reduce our carbon emissions and increase our renewable energy portfolio. Our steps toward sustainability include rooftop solar, an interactive Solar Flower Garden, battery storage and a microgrid – all on our campus. Our microgrid allows us to deploy energy when members need it most and strengthens our resiliency.
While we work toward a more sustainable future, our focus is on ensuring that we reach our goals without passing additional costs on to our members.
• Reduce carbon emissions by 75%: We will reduce the carbon in our energy mix and reach our clean energy goals by 2030 while keeping rates low for our members.
• Increase renewable energy portfolio by 200%: We will achieve this goal by using our long-term power supply strategy, ensuring that we have an adequate and diversified portfolio to support the energy needs of the future.
Cobb EMC is regulated by a board of nine directors who are elected from and by the membership. Below are the nominees for director election in 2023. Voting for director elections will take place by mail, email or at the Annual Meeting. Visit cobbemc.com/annualmeeting for details.
ED CROWELL, DISTRICT 1
Ed Crowell, currently the District 1 Director, has served on the Cobb EMC Board since November of 2011. During that time, he has served on and chaired various committees and has also served as both Vice-Chairman and Chairman. Ed is currently the Chair of the Governance Committee.
Ed has more than 30 years’ experience as a CEO of a notfor-profit trade association and has decades of experience on a variety of for-profit and not-forprofit boards. He has worked in commercial real estate, helped launch a software company, is the published author of three graphic novels and an avid scuba diver and white water rafting enthusiast.
Ed and his wife Cynthia have been married 34 years, have two grown children and are active members of North Metro Church. They support a variety of charities in Cobb County and the 7 Rivers mission orphanage in South Africa. Cynthia, a retired nurse and high school teacher is a regular volunteer at the Good Samaritan Clinic in Austell.
DAVID TENNANT, DISTRICT 6
Facebook: DavidTennant.CobbEMC
It has been my privilege to represent all Cobb EMC members as the director from district 6. I have tried to do so with integrity and ethics, and if re-elected will continue in that vein. Over the past years I have served in leadership
on the board and currently serve as the Chairman of the Board.
My energy background is extensive and has enabled me to serve you with a full understanding of power costs, industry trends, and the complex issues surrounding power generation, transmission, and distribution.
Through effective leadership and collaboration with senior staff and full board, the following accomplishments have been achieved:
• Cobb EMC ranks #1 for the lowest electric rates of all EMCs in Georgia (2023)
• Cobb EMC ranks #2 in the nation for electric service reliability (2023)
• There has not been a major rate increase in eight years due to controlling costs and judicious infrastructure improvements
• Helped create the Cobb EMC Foundation, providing over $7 million to local charities.
• BS, Mechanical Engineering, Florida Atlantic University
• MS, Technology & Science Policy, Georgia Institute of Technology
• MBA, Kennesaw State University
• PE – Professional Engineer, Georgia
• PMP – Project Management Certification
Professional Background –Relevant Experience
• Directed over $3.5 Billion in projects and programs
• Developed an award-winning $100 million alternative energy project in Canada
• Directed the development of three clean energy projects in Central America
• Lived and worked for two years in the Caribbean improving operations of a major utility saving over $140 million in yearly operating costs
• Five years’ experience in nuclear power operations
• Spearheaded a $90-million German manufacturing facility in the Southeastern United States
• Published over 20 papers on technical and managerial topics; authored a book on Product Development
BARBARA SIMS COLLIER, DISTRICT 6
Barbara Sims
Collier has been an East Cobb County resident for over 35 years and a Cobb EMC member for 18 years. She has two adult children and three grandchildren. Barbara is a lifelong learner and has achieved the following: B. A. Communication –Cum Laude, M.A. Integrated Global Communication – GPA 3.9, and certifications in ESL and Marketing. Collier had a 38-year career at IBM in management, strategic planning, quality assurance, testing, and personnel development roles where she received numerous awards for innovations. Collier has championed corporate policies, community initiatives, good causes involving literacy, small business development, microenterprise for women, teaching continuing education classes at Emory and supporting diversity in the workplace.
• Member Involvement and Transparency: With over 200,000 members, the nine Directors on the Board serve as district representatives. Votes and representation matter. Voter turnout represents a small percentage of members. Collier promotes greater participation for new ideas and voices.
• Rates: Cobb EMC has the lowest rates in the state of Georgia. Collier wants to see if lower rates can be achieved by promoting energy efficiency and offering free audits for high usage members.
• Environmental and Equity
Focus: Cobb EMC’s strategic goals include environmental and clean energy by 2030, however, incremental milestones are needed to meet the target. Collier wants Cobb DOT, Cobb government and Georgia Tech (Smart Cities Plan) to partner with them for electric public transportation and school buses.
• Outreach: Member communities that have been left out of energy conversations and decision-
making processes need to help identify limitations, recognize opportunities, highlight strengths, and find viable solutions.
I believe that I can bring valuable insight to the Cobb EMC Board of Directors; I would appreciate your vote and would make it count.
Malcolm Swanson, District 7, resides in Kennesaw with his wife of 42 years Nancy. He has been a member of Cobb EMC for over 35 years. After receiving a degree in mathematics from Troy University, Malcolm returned to work in Cobb County while also volunteering on the Cobb County Parks and Recreation Commission for more than 15 years, serving as chairman for two terms. He is currently on the North Georgia State Fair board of directors and has completed a term as president. He is also a director on the Cobb Sheriff’s
Foundation. Malcolm attends Marietta First Baptist Church where he has served as Chair of Trustees and as a Deacon. He holds a Credentialed Cooperative Director Certification, Board Leadership Certification and Director Gold Certification. Thirty courses offered by NRECA were taken to attain the above credentials. His roles on the Board have included Chair of the Audit Committee and Chair of Public Affairs and Education. Currently he is Chair of the Budget and Finance Committee as well as a member of the Public Affairs and Education Committee and the Human Resources Committee. The Board of Directors teaming with senior staff and the men and women of Cobb EMC are leaders nationally and an example for other electric cooperatives to follow. We have placed a premium on values, behaviors and outcomes, working to ensure the energy needs of the future are met. Our mission is to provide safe, reliable electricity with competitive rates for our members.
BRYAN BOYD District 8 ERIC BROADWELL District 9 ED CROWELL District 1 TRIPPER SHARP Secretary-Treasurer, District 5 DAVID MCCLELLAN District 4 RUDY UNDERWOOD Vice Chairman, District 2 DAVID TENNANT Chairman, District 6 KELLY BODNER District 3 MALCOLM SWANSON District 7
Cobb Electric Membership Corporation is a not-forprofit electric membership corporation whose purpose is to provide electric service to its members.
The consolidated financial statements present the financial position and results of operations of Cobb Electric Membership Corporation and its wholly-owned subsidiaries, Cobb Energy Management Corporation, Gas South LLC and Fiber South Broadband LLC.
McNair, McLemore, Middlebrooks & Co. LLC conducted our audits as of December 31, 2022, in accordance with auditing standards generally accepted in the United States of America. The financial information included in this report represents a summary of our consolidated financial condition and operating results. Excerpts of the audited consolidated financial statements are available at cobbemc.com
Tripper
2022 year-end – numbers represent Cobb EMC data only
Come to our member appreciation event, and hear how our team is working to make your electric service more convenient and reliable.
Plus, members who attend and register in person by 9:30 a.m. will receive 4 North Georgia State Fair tickets
Can’t make it? Watch the business meeting online to learn more about your co-op.
8-11:30 a.m. Saturday, Sept. 16, at Jim R. Miller Park
8-9:30 a.m. member registration
8:30 a.m. candidate speeches in person and via Zoom
9:30 a.m. business meeting in person and via Zoom
More info: cobbemc.com/annualmeeting
Bring this magazine, a copy of your bill or the Cobb EMC app to simplify registration.
