Inland Power 2021 Annual Report

2021

INLAND POWER ANNUAL REPORT

new beginnings

10110 W HALLETT RD. S P O K A N E , WA 9 9 2 24

president & ceo letter

1

mission

our mission is our members

3

OUR MISSION IS OUR

inland by the numbers

5

financials/rates

7

vision

wildfire

9

2021 accomplishments

11

members

BE A PR EMIER MEMBER-OW NED ENERGY COOPER ATI V E COMMITTED TO

safe, reliable

service at competitive rates W ITH GR EAT MEMBER ENGAGEMENT A ND EX PER IENCES.

president & ceo letter We’ve taken another trip around the sun and we are grateful to continue moving forward toward some semblance of normal after more than two years of chaos.

Jasen comes to Inland with a wide breadth

be beneficial and accessible to everyone–

record-shattering number of new service

of experience in the electric cooperative

regardless of income. We also learned that

requests and managed our fleet inventory,

world. He has been in the industry more

electric vehicles may not be at the forefront

among many other achievements that are

than 26 years and has served a combined

of your concerns. While state and federal

highlighted throughout this annual report.

20 years in the CEO role for two previous

goals and future mandates won’t go away,

electric co-ops. We are excited about

we plan to offer educational programs and

his vision for Inland Power and we look

resources, so you are ready for the EV world

forward to our future success under Jasen’s

when it arrives.

leadership.

Inland Power has also adapted, refocused and prospered. We look to 2022 as a new beginning and we are thrilled to continue our longstanding tradition of providing reliable power with an exceptional

dollars, long-term debt is $68 million and

Late last year, Inland Power partnered with

member satisfaction and we are so grateful

cooperative was also able to return $2.48

the National Rural Electric Cooperative

and humbled by the results. Overall, Inland

million in capital credits to the membership

Association (NRECA) to conduct an in-depth

Power ranked in the top 25 percent in terms

in 2021.

member survey to learn what we are doing

of member satisfaction when compared

well, what we can improve and what you as a

to other utilities across the nation. We are

top 25 percent IN TER MS OF MEMBER SATISFACTION.

Throughout this report, you will see evidence of our commitment to service and continually creating value for our members.

We would like to thank our employees for their dedication to Inland Power as well as the successes highlighted in this annual report.

On behalf of your Inland Power board of

Inland Power saw various new beginnings in 2021. Our dedicated employees began returning to the office as the impacts of the pandemic shifted. While we were grateful for the ability to work from home, we were glad to come together again as we met new faces and enjoyed seeing familiar ones.

One of the most significant new beginnings was the hiring of our new CEO. After a six-month search, we were thrilled to welcome your new CEO, Jasen Bronec to the Inland Power family in August.

RANDY SUESS, PRESIDENT INLAND POWER BOARD OF TRUSTEES

transaction, total assets are $205 million net margins were $2.73 million in 2021. Your

member experience.

JASEN BRONEC, CEO INLAND POWER AND LIGHT

After setting aside the BPA prepayment

A large part of our survey focused on

INL A ND POW ER R A NK ED IN THE As the world continues to adjust to the impacts of the pandemic,

Inland’s overall financial health is excellent.

membership would like to see from Inland in

thrilled that you value your cooperative as

trustees and all the employees of Inland

the future. From conservation programs and

much as we value you.

Power we thank you for your business,

electric vehicles, to backup generation and energy assistance, you spoke up and voiced your opinion, for which we are very thankful.

As always, Inland’s commitment to providing reliable power is at the forefront of our focus. Ensuring our system remains

We are dedicated to creating and

resilient and dependable is of the utmost

invigorating programs that help you with

importance to Inland Power. Our long-

your energy needs. We learned that

term work plan includes critical updates

weatherization programs and back up

to substations and other infrastructure to

generation are top-of-mind and we are

keep the lights on. In addition to our annual

devoted to ensuring these programs will

work plan, our team processed another

the opportunity to serve your needs and we look forward to continuing this new beginning in 2022.

I N L A N D POW ER’S COM M ITM EN T TO

providing reliable power I S

AT T H E F O R E F R O N T O F O U R F O C U S .

1 NEW BEGINNINGS | 2021 ANNUAL REPORT

NEW BEGINNINGS | 2021 ANNUAL REPORT 2

our mission is our members

At Inland Power, our community is at the heart of everything we do.

When we say our mission is our members, we mean more than just providing electricity. We believe in giving back to our communities. As an Inland Power member, you have a unique opportunity to support the Inland Power Community Foundation, which is a program that provides financial support to organizations in our service territory as well as individual Inland Power members.

The concept of the foundation is an

OV E RC OM I NG E L E CT R IC A R R E A R AGE S

For years, Inland has worked closely with the Spokane Neighborhood Action Partners (SNAP) to offer energy assistance.

This past year, Inland and SNAP have worked hard to ensure the much-needed assistance our members needed was

Although pandemic mandates are beginning to ease, many impacts, specifically economic, are still plaguing the nation. Inland Power’s member

available. In 2021, over 550 Inland Power

engagement team has worked diligently

members received more than $54,342 through SNAP’s energy assistance program.

We are grateful for our partnership with SNAP and the impact being made directly to our members in need.

to help set up payment arrangements for members who fell behind on their energy bill due to negative effects of the pandemic.

OV ER 550 INL A ND POW ER MEMBER S R ECEI V ED

more than $54,342.

YOUR DONATIONS M A K E THIS

extension of the principle on which

POSSIBLE .

electric cooperatives were built more than

thank you.

50 years ago. We are neighbors helping neighbors to benefit the communities in

We would not be able to give back in this

which we live and work. From nonprofit

way if not for your generous support. It

donations to scholarship recipients and

is your donations that make this possible.

livestock exhibitors, your community

Your support means our neighbors are

foundation gave more than $53,000 to

being supported. Thank you to all of you

deserving recipients all across our service

who have given to this program.

territory this past year.

AT I N L A N D P O W E R ,

our community is at the heart OF E V ERY TH ING W E DO. 3 NEW BEGINNINGS | 2021 ANNUAL REPORT

NEW BEGINNINGS | 2021 ANNUAL REPORT 4

inland by the numbers

45,147

33,548 101,962 7,758

meters

transformers

NUMBER OF

NUMBER OF

NUMBER OF

poles

MILES OF

5.8

line

members PER MILE OF line

5 NEW BEGINNINGS | 2021 ANNUAL REPORT

90

TOTAL NUMBER OF employees

3,354

NUMBER OF MEMBERS PARTICIPATING IN social

media

20,096 2,846

MEMBERS ENROLLED IN SmartHub

MEMBERS GIVING TO THE

Inland Power Community Foundation

NEW BEGINNINGS | 2021 ANNUAL REPORT 6

2020 ytd financial statements

As a cooperative, our members maintain an ownership interest and stake in everything we do, and that includes our financial strength. Your cooperative had a banner year in 2021. After setting aside the BPA Prepayment transaction, total assets are $205 million dollars, long-term debt is $68 million and net margins were $2.73 million in 2021. Your cooperative was also able to return $2.48 million in capital credits to the membership in 2021.

average residential rates for 2021 per kwh Inland Power’s 2021 rate per kWh is 8.37 cents.

16.63 16.33

8.33 10.57

8.82 7.99

14.87

10.82

10.06

8.97

8.33 8.27

10.27

9.70

8.97 9.75

10.38

18.0

Out of 815 cooperatives in the country, Inland Power ranks 17th for lowest rates.

9.77¢ 8.37¢

10.24 8.75

7.63 9.33

9.90

8.32 9.13

8.36

7.51

19.82

9.84

$ 167,069,000 Non-Utility Plant 1,000

Irrigation 7% Commercial 19% Residential 74%

165,581,000 1,000 6,553,000

Cash and Cash Equivalents 3,306,000

16,000

Accounts & Notes Receivable 13,519,000

13,248,000

Materials & Supplies 9,344,000

7,673,000

BPA Prepayment 92,357,000

103,473,000

Other Prepayment 1,761,000

1,336,000

Other Assets 4,077,00

4,314,00

$ 298,221,000

$ 302,195,000

EQUITIES, MARGINS AND LIABILITIES

Equities & Margins 112,564,000 Accounts Payable 10,282,000

112,055,000

Long Term Debt 68,557,000

68,669,000

BPA Prepay Long Term Debt 88,279,000

99,550,000

9,550,000

Other Liabilities 7,681,000

8,535,000

Deferred Gain & Credits

3,836,000 $ 302,195,000

$

2021 78,291,000

$

2020 80,885,000

Cost of Power 43,319,000 41,882,000 Consumer Accounts & Marketing

11,309,000

12,935,000

1,250,000

2,641,000

Administrative & General 7,778,000

10.06

6,119,000

Depreciation 7,406,000

7,336,000

Taxes 4,776,000

4,850,000

Interest 2,774,000

2,700,000

Total Cost of Electric Service $ 78,462,000 $ 78,612,000

Operating Margins

(321,000)

2,422,000

Net Benefits of BPA Prepay

1,381,000

1,513,000

Non-Operating Margins

1,674,000

875,000

Net Margins

(i n t h o u s a n d s)

$

Investments in Assoc. Orgs.

6,787,000

Operations & Maintenance

7.50 - 9.50 9.51 - 11.50 11.51 - 16.50 16.51+

ytd revenue

2020

EXPENSES

9.93

27.55

number of meters

2021

Net Utility Plant

Operating Revenue

9.52 10.44

ASSETS

STATEMENTS OF REVENUES & MARGINS

11.90

9.43

13.04¢

BALANCE SHEETS

10,859,000

$ 298,221,000

11.15

9.16

8.58

9.64

THE NATION

13.63

9.44

9.92

lowest rates IN

18.54 19.13

12.21

8.27

H AS SOME OF THE

13.54

18.19

8.53

9.13

INL A ND POW ER

ytd expenses Power Costs 55%

$

2,734,000

$

4,810,000

equity w/o BPA prepay

Admin & Operations 26% Taxes, Depreciation & Interest 19%

NEW BEGINNINGS | 2021 ANNUAL REPORT 8

Wildfire burns in eastern Washington.

In 2021, 674,249 acres burned throughout Washington state.

wildfire It appears the Pacific Northwest has added a fifth season to spring, summer, fall and winter: wildfire season.

While we have much to celebrate in

be a large undertaking, but it is vital to

terms of accomplishments, we also must

ensure the longevity and success of our

address some struggles. It appears the

cooperative.

Pacific Northwest has added a fifth season to spring, summer, fall and winter. We now must include wildfire season in the mix. The last two years have proven to be trying for our region as wildfires have scorched millions of acres and destroyed towns, homes and lives. Inland Power, along with other utilities in the region have worked hard to create wildfire mitigation plans that will help reduce the risk of fire spreading. From placing our electric system in fire safety mode during dangerous fire weather, to hardening our infrastructure against the threat of fires, Inland Power is committed to keeping you and your cooperative safe. This will

9 NEW BEGINNINGS | 2021 ANNUAL REPORT

Part of increasing our protections against wildfire is ensuring our rights-of-way are clear of all vegetation and obstructions.

Inland only has a 15-foot right of way on each side of our poles. Often, extremely tall trees that are outside our right-of-way could fall and still come into contact with our lines.

If you have dead or dying trees that you are concerned about on your property, contact our rightof-way maintenance coordinator at (509) 789-4287.

INL A ND POW ER IS COMMITTED TO

keeping you & your cooperative safe, ENSUR ING THE LONGEV ITY & SUCCESS OF OUR COOPER ATI V E .

NEW BEGINNINGS | 2021 ANNUAL REPORT 10

2021 operational accomplishments

After power purchases, our operations & engineering departments make up the bulk of Inland’s expense budget each year.

These projects range from substation enhancements,

• Converted a portion of single-phase line to three phase

N E W SE RV IC E R E QU E STS

I N L A N D F L E ET

includes warehouse systems and protocols

As people flock to Spokane and building of

Inland Power’s fleet is another aspect of

to ensure proper inventory management.

new homes skyrockets, work production

Inland’s budget that adds up quickly. Our

and new construction continues to

fleet must be safe, reliable and able to

outperform previous years. New service

endure driving in tough, off-road conditions.

replacing poles, bells and cutouts and building several

on the southern shore of Long Lake to provide improved

requests hit a new record in 2021 and our

miles of overhead and underground line. We at Inland

system reliability and support future growth in the area.

dedicated member experience and design

Power are committed to providing members with safe and reliable service and we are excited to continue our system

• Built a portion of line along Spotted Road between Crosscut Road and Ridgeway to improve switching

improvements.

capabilities in the area. This should improve system

In 2021 Inland’s operation and engineering departments

reliability, by providing backup transmission, along the

focused on these large projects:

northern shore of Long Lake and on the north side of

Upgraded the power transformer in Mica

• Rebuilt a section of line generally along Craig Road on

substation to provide greater responsiveness to

the south side of Long Lake to provide improved system

outages and provide room for future load growth in the Dishman-Mica area.

reliability and support future growth in the area.

• Made further refinements to our wildfire mitigation plan

• Completed the first year of a threeyear replacement of selected

efficiency. This was an incredible feat. Our growth over the last several years has been exciting and we look forward to continue this trajectory of progress.

New Service Requests:

Spokane.

• Upgrade of the Mica Substation.

team handled all the requests quickly and

and internal processes to reduce the risk of wildfire in our service territory.

• 2019 = 954

• 2021 = 1,418

switching devices in aged

million in three new medium bucket trucks,

efficiency. In 2021, we constructed three

two large bucket trucks, a substation truck,

new covered structures in our storage yard,

five new crew material trucks, two UTVs, new

two of which are parking buildings for our

trailers and new mini excavators. Each year

equipment. The other building serves as a

we are very diligent in assessing our needs,

transformer exchange and hazard material

getting the best value, and getting the right

building.

subdivisions to improve system reliability.

R E L I A BI L I T Y

end of the equipment’s useful life to avoid

We pride ourselves in providing affordable

the breakdowns that impact our employee’s

and reliable electric service to our

ability to serve you, our members.

members. We are very proud to say that our power system holds a reliability score

WA R E HOUSE

• 2020 = 1,082

square feet of space, which allows for much better material organization and distribution

as well, that we replace equipment at the

• 2018 = 541

storage yard, which added nearly 200,000

In 2021 we invested approximately $2.01

equipment for the job. It is very important

• 2017 = 445

Last year we reported that we expanded our

of 99.96 percent. Even so, there are times

Much like our fleet, it is imperative that

when circumstances outside our control

our warehouse is efficiently designed so

cause power outages. Here is a list of

crews can quickly access materials needed

outages by cause that we experienced in

for outages and other projects. This also

2021.

2021 outages by cause animal

equipment

4.4%

12.2% 0.0%

extreme storm

fire

lightning

manmade

planned

1.2%

0.6%

4.3%

51.0%

snow / ice

tree

unknown

wind

0.9%

4.2%

13.3%

5.7%

power supplier

2.2%

NEW BEGINNINGS | 2021 ANNUAL REPORT 12

10110 W HALLETT RD. SPOKANE, WA 99224

2022 board of trustees RANDY SUESS PRESIDENT CHENEY, WA

GARRY ROSMAN

VICE PRESIDENT DAVENPORT, WA

KRISTINA BAHR

TREASURER SPOKANE VALLEY, WA

JIM KROLL

SECRETARY COLFAX, WA

CHRIS DAVIS

TRUSTEE COLBERT, WA

GALE RETTKOWSKI TRUSTEE WILBUR, WA

BRIAN SLAYBAUGH

TRUSTEE POMEROY, WA