Utilities

Adequate, reliable sources of electricity, natural gas and water are essential to a community’s quality of life and to its economic prosperity. Tulsa’s utility needs are met by dedicated providers attuned to the future.

Electricity

For more than 100 years, Tulsa-based Public Service Company of Oklahoma has been empowering the people of Oklahoma. PSO serves more than 30,000 square miles of eastern and southwestern Oklahoma, and over a half million customers — 300,000 in the Tulsa metropolitan area alone. PSO is part of the American Electric Power (Nasdaq: AEP) family, one of the nation’s largest utility companies. In Oklahoma, PSO and AEP employees total 1,600, including some 1,100 in the Tulsa area.

PSO and AEP are active corporate citizens, making $13.6 million in contributions to Oklahoma causes

CONTINUED ON P. 34 Oklahoma Natural Gas serves nearly 900,000 residential, commercial and industrial customers in the state.

TULSA UTILITY COSTS / TYPICAL MONTHLY BILL

ELECTRICITY - 2020 ANNUAL AVERAGE ELECTRICITY PRICE

(CENTS PER KILOWATTHOUR) Commercial customers

Public Service Company of Oklahoma 6.58

Industrial customers 3.87

U.S. Average 10.59 6.67

NATURAL GAS SERVICE 1 - 2020 ANNUAL AVERAGE NATURAL GAS PRICE

(DOLLARS PER THOUSAND CUBIC FEET) Commercial customers

Oklahoma 6.93

U.S. Average 7.49

Industrial customers 2.29 3.32

WATER AND SEWER COMMERCIAL SERVICE 2

Water Sewer

INSIDE CITY $3.68 $9.36

OUTSIDE CITY $4.75 $13.38

WATER AND SEWER INDUSTRIAL SERVICE 2

Water Sewer

INSIDE CITY $2.68 $9.36

OUTSIDE CITY $3.37 $13.38

1 ONLY A MINORITY OF VOLUMES ARE SOLD DIRECTLY BY THE LOCAL DISTRIBUTION COMPANY TO THE END-USERS. LARGE COMMERCIAL AND INDUSTRIAL CUSTOMERS SHOULD CONTACT OKLAHOMA NATURAL GAS ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT OFFICE FOR SPECIFIC COSTS. MOST VOLUMES ARE TRANSPORTED, MEANING OKLAHOMA NATURAL GAS TRANSPORTS THE GAS TO CUSTOMERS WHO PURCHASE THE GAS FROM A THIRD-PARTY SUPPLIER. 2 WATER AND SEWER RATES ARE BASED ON COST PER THOUSAND GALLONS. ADDITIONAL CHARGES MAY APPLY. RATES DO NOT INCLUDE MONTHLY METER CHARGES, WHICH DEPEND ON THE SIZE OF THE METER. SOURCES: U.S. ENERGY INFORMATION ADMINISTRATION AND CITY OF TULSA WATER AND SEWER DEPARTMENT, 2021. REPORT PREPARED BY RESEARCH WIZARD, TULSA CITYCOUNTY LIBRARY.

Public Service Company of Oklahoma

PSO servicers conduct a pre-COVID-19 electrical safety discussion and demonstration for a group of kids at Jenks East Elementary School. PSO employees hold electrical safety talks for kids and adults throughout the year.

Public Service Company of Oklahoma (PSO) provides electricity service to more than 562,000 customer accounts in 232 cities and towns across Oklahoma. The company, a unit of American Electric Power (Nasdaq: AEP), is headquartered in downtown Tulsa.

PSO’s team of 1,600 Oklahomans is committed to delivering safe, reliable and affordable power to customers. And the company is equally committed to building strong, sustainable communities throughout the state.

Each year PSO and the AEP Foundation provide critical funding measures to developing community enrichment programs and assisting local and regional nonprofits meet the needs of every Tulsan. The year 2021 was no different.

This past year, the AEP Foundation gifted $50,000 to Youth Services of Tulsa (YST) to support the organization’s Transitions Program: Putting Youth on the Path to Self-Sufficiency. “Valuing diversity and promoting equity are part of our culture and central to our success,” said Peggy Simmons, PSO President and COO.

Another significant gift from the AEP Foundation came with the announcement of continued gifts to STEM related learning through the Oklahoma Future Farmers of America Foundation as well as to Robotics programs in our schools that challenges the creativity and ingenuity of bright minds everywhere.

An exciting development on the clean energy front was the addition of two new wind farms, collectively called the North Central Energy Facilities (NCEF), now in commercial operation. Located southwest of Enid, the 287-megawatt (MW) Maverick facility is part of the 1,485-MW North Central Energy Facilities (NCEF) project. In addition to Maverick, the NCEF project includes the 199-MW Sundance wind farm, which began commercial operation on April 14, 2021, and the 999-MW Traverse wind farm, which is under construction with planned commercial operation in early 2022. In total, the facilities will generate enough energy to power 440,000 homes. “PSO customers expect clean, renewable energy to be a growing part of our energy portfolio, and we are listening,” said Peggy Simmons, PSO president and chief operating officer. “Wind generation has zero fuel costs. That savings and federal incentives offset the cost of the facilities. That means an anticipated net long-term savings of more than $1 billion for our customers over the expected 30-year life of the facilities.”

For the fourth consecutive year, PSO received recognition, Platinum level in 2021, from Sustainable Tulsa’s Scor3card, an online sustainability tracking and assessment tool for organizations focused on three areas of sustainability: people, profit and planet.

PSO is proud of its role in improving the quality of life of Tulsa and the metro area, and looks forward to continuing to work with its partners to add to the vision, enthusiasm and excitement of Tulsa’s future.

Visit psoklahoma.com for more information.

CONTINUED FROM P. 32

since 2005, including a $500,000 grant to the Greenwood Rising history center in August. PSO ranked No. 1 among 87 midsized utilities in the South for 2021, according to J.D. Power. PSO was the top ranked utility in five of six categories, including power quality and reliability; corporate citizenship; price; billing and payment; and communications. The company also was recognized as a champion of U.S. military veterans by the Oklahoma Veterans Alliance, and, for the ninth consecutive year, as one of the area’s top inclusive workplaces by Tulsa Metro Chamber’s Mosaic program. — Wayne Greene, PSO

Natural Gas

Serving Tulsa since 1906, Oklahoma Natural Gas provides reliable natural gas distribution services to nearly 900,000 residential, commercial and industrial customers in Oklahoma. It has 24,671 miles of distribution mains and services lines statewide. Committed to delivering natural gas for a better tomorrow, Oklahoma Natural Gas provides an energy source to customers that improves the quality of life in communities and helps local economies thrive. Oklahoma Natural Gas is a division of Tulsa-based ONE Gas Inc. (NYSE: OGS), a 100% regulated natural gas distribution company serving 2.2 million customers in Kansas, Oklahoma and Texas. — Leah Harper, Oklahoma Natural Gas

Water

The City of Tulsa supplies drinking water to approximately 140,600 metered accounts in the City and more than 600,000 people in the metropolitan area. Treatment plants, distribution lines and other infrastructure have been built and upgraded over the years to keep pace with Tulsa’s growing need for high quality drinking water. Tulsa’s water delivery system is ready to handle future needs, with a treatment capacity of 220 million gallons per day. Average daily use is 108.5 million gallons per day. — Lara Weber, City of Tulsa How a community delivers and takes away water can be one of the truest tests of environmental management. The treatment, the testing and the water/wastewater connections to the home is a real measure of civilization. Tulsa planned ahead building a dam and pipeline system to Tulsa from Spavinaw Creek 54 miles away back in the early 1920s. Today, Tulsa’s drinking water comes from three lakes: Lakes Spavinaw and Eucha on Spavinaw Creek, Lake Oologah on the Verdigris River, and Lake Hudson on the Neosho River.

It is because of these investments that Tulsa has plenty of available water for its citizens. Even with a decade long drought in the middle and southern parts of the country Tulsa has not been forced to restrict water usage since 1981. The two treatment plants that get water from the above-mentioned lakes can pump up to 220 million gallons a day. Both treatment plants performed well in 2021 with no issues or violations. City chemists and plant operators analyzed over 33,000 samples in 2020 to ensure quality. Tulsa treatment plants supply drinking water daily to nearly 145,000 metered accounts, over 16,000 hydrants through multiple pump stations and treated water storage reservoirs to over 600,000 people in the metro area. — Michael Patton

A 1926 photo of Spavinaw Lake and Dam, one of three sources of Tulsa’s drinking water

Oklahoma Natural Gas

Oklahoma Natural Gas, one of the largest fullyregulated natural gas distribution companies in the country, has provided services to homes and businesses across the state for more than 100 years. Since the beginning, safety and service have been central to our business. Headquartered right here in Tulsa, Oklahoma Natural Gas delivers safe, affordable and reliable natural gas service to nearly 900,000 customers while innovating new renewable solutions for a cleaner energy future. We’re more than a utility, though. We are a part of the Tulsa community, employing more than 1,100 individuals across the state. Over the past year, we invested more than $3.2 million through ONE Gas Foundation grants and community giving to support and enhance our communities for our employees and customers.

Oklahoma Natural Gas is working toward a sustainable energy future, reducing our environmental impact and ensuring the resiliency and reliability of our delivery systems. We partner with community leaders to determine a safe and balanced approach to providing cleaner energy that remains affordable and reliable. Oklahoma Natural Gas also offers programs such as gas appliance rebates and free energy assessments to help customers and businesses identify efficiency upgrades as we all work together toward a sustainable clean energy future. Learn more at oklahomanaturalgas.com.

Oklahoma Disaster Restoration

Oklahoma Disaster Restoration (ODR) is a familyowned and operated business in Tulsa. Founded in 1988, ODR employs technicians who are certified in disaster restoration and reconstruction services.

“Our company utilizes state-of-the-art technology and equipment, and a highly trained staff for perils such as fire, water, sewer, mold and bio-hazard,” says Jay Stokes, president and co-owner of ODR with his wife, Tammy Stokes, who is general manager.

Oklahoma Disaster Restoration offers:

Rapid Response Disaster Mitigation: The ODR team responds to calls within an hour, 24 hours a day. Callers talk to a live person with the experience to guide them through what can otherwise be a traumatic situation. We are a first responder for your disaster!

Quality Workmanship: ODR’s team is highly skilled in treating water and smoke damaged items, and offers a commitment to satisfaction and happiness with the outcome. The Right Contractor: ODR can work as the general contractor to assume clients receive a quick return to their home or business. It is a third-generation owned company that adheres to these core values: perserverance, integrity, compassion, urgency, and stewardship.

Commercial Restoration: ODR is the one to call for your business property needs, too. Our seasoned project managers have the experience to put a business back together quickly with less down time. ODR also helps small and medium businesses plan ahead by setting up Emergency Response Plans to prepare for unexpected disasters. ODR helps you keep your business open.

“The difference is in our people. ODR is a great company for our employees. We invest in our team which which makes members more valuable to us, their families, and our customers,” notes Tammy Stokes. “We still adhere to old-fashion family values in managing our business.”

6565 E. 42nd St. | 918-992-4ODR

okdisaster.com