From the Top with CEO Patrick Grace

I hope you and your family had a fantastic holiday season. We had a great 2019 at OEC and are looking forward to an even better 2020.

I hope you took a chance to read in last month's Co-op News about the groundbreaking partnership we have forged with Norman Public Schools to bring another renewable energy farm to our service area. We are proud to begin construction on the first-of-its-kind solar education facility and excited for what it could mean to future generations.

When we constructed our Solar Garden (at Highway 77 and Interstate 35) with Western Farmers Electric Cooperative (WFEC, our wholesale power provider), we did not build it with an education piece in mind. Despite that, we have hosted over 500 people touring the facility educating them about the realities of renewable energy. It became clear the community could benefit from a purposeful, renewables-focused learning experience. Who better to partner with than a public school district that is interested in learning more about and promoting renewable energy.

Since the construction of the Solar Garden, we have learned the Norman community and our surrounding communities are passionate about renewables. The Solar Garden has been a great learning experience for us, as well, as we learn more about how solar performs among other renewables.

I appreciate WFEC for always being a great partner and for being one of the most forward-thinking generation and transmission cooperatives in the nation. They are one of the main reasons Oklahoma is one of the top states in the country in renewables production.

Follow along in this magazine and on our Facebook page as our new solar project gets under way in 2020.