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As a Touchstone Energy Cooperative, we strive to offer new solutions and state of the art technology to meet our member’s needs.
Your Touchstone Energy Cooperative and our power supply partners of Northeast Missouri Power Cooperative and Associated Electric Cooperatives are continually making changes to make our power generation and delivery to you our member –consumers as environmentally friendly as allowed by cost effective measures. For example, Associated Electric Cooperative has been a leader in incorporating wind energy and other renewable energy into the generation power supply mix. Associated currently has 1,240 megawatts of wind generation in the portfolio representing 17% of member load in 2024. Also, the Hydro power allocation represents 5% of the member's energy needs bringing the renewable resources to 22% of the total power supply mix for 2024.
At the distribution cooperative level, we at Southern Iowa Electric Cooperative have two programs for our member-owners to consider.
Use energy created by renewable energy jointly owned by Southern Iowa Electric Cooperative and our generation/transmission partners Northeast Power Electric and Associated Electric Cooperative
Members may choose to purchase blocks of renewable equal to all or some of their energy from these renewable sources. Many residential customers will average through the year 1000 kWh’s each month of electric usage. With the purchase of 1 block (100-kilowatt hour (kWh) for residential), 10% of the energy used in the home is from a renewable source. The premium for the Green Power Program is added to the amount you are already paying for electricity. The program will be offered semi-annually with a term of 6 months.
For Residential members: The cost for the Green Power Program for the January 1 - June 30, 2025 term is an adder of $0.258 per 100 kWh block (per month). This means for each 100 kWh block that is purchased, $0.258 will be added to the current electric bill. Renewable energy is sold in 100-kilowatt hour (kWh) blocks.
For Commercial & Industrial members: The cost for the Green Power Program for the January 1 - June 30, 2025 term is an adder of $2.58 per 1 MWh block (per month). Renewable energy is sold in 1-Megawatt hour (MWh) blocks.
Are you considering an investment in solar power? We can help!
The core mission of Southern Iowa Electric Cooperative, Inc., is to provide you with power that is safe, reliable, environmentally responsible and affordable. Whether the power is generated through the cooperative’s generation and transmission systems or through an individual member’s distributed generation system, we never deviate from this mission.
With public interest growing in both renewable energy and the advancements of small-scale electric generating systems, it’s easy to understand why the idea of solar power interests so many people. However, adding distributed generation at your home, farm or business takes much more effort than just a trip to the hardware store and plugging in a solar panel when you get back. It’s a process that requires a significant amount of fact-finding and analysis – and then careful evaluation of the information you learned about everything from equipment availability and siting requirements to professional installation and the significant dollar investment involved.
We invite you to call us for assistance at the beginning of your investigative process. Beyond meeting the requirements of Iowa law stating that you must contact the cooperative before attempting to interconnect your own power generating equipment to our lines, we can walk you through a number of preliminary safety and installation precautions to consider.
You also should contact the experts at the Iowa Energy Center (www.iowaenergycenter.org) or Indian Hills Community College for advice on what other issues to consider, including a site assessment. You should get in touch with several lenders, beyond the one the seller of the solar equipment recommends. Also, you should consult your attorney and insurance agent for their input on your project.
Landowners: Know the facts before signing a solar project lease
If you’re a landowner in rural Iowa, you may have received solicitations in the mail offering land lease options for proposed solar projects. Often, these letters offer attractive per-acre rental payments for various phases of a long-term proposed project, promising steady and predictable income. However, like with all contracts, the devil is in the details. Before signing an agreement, we encourage you to do some homework and seek legal counsel to protect your rights.
Most of these letters are coming from companies outside of Iowa looking to lease land for future solar projects. We have noticed that many of these letters refer erroneously to Iowa law; referencing legislation (Senate File 2356) that did not pass last session. In fact, Iowa’s electric cooperatives and other groups registered in opposition to the legislation due to its likely negative impact on electric co-ops and our members.
Some solicitations falsely claim local support for their solar initiative or that the electric output would somehow benefit your neighbors or the local electric cooperative. We have also seen letters that deceptively include endorsements attributed to the Iowa Farm Bureau. IFB’s legal team is working to remove these perceived endorsements.
Please consult your legal counsel before signing any agreement or contract. Your legal counsel can help explain the benefits and disadvantages of these agreements, answer any questions you have, and help negotiate fair and equitable terms. These are long-term agreements that can give the solar company exclusive options and control of your land for decades. Spending some extra time up front to better understand the terms and conditions of the proposed agreement can save you significant time, money and headaches in the future.
Notice: Iowa Code 476.6A Alternate energy production facilities-notification requirements:
1. On and after January 1, 2013, the owner of an alternate energy production facility, as defined in section 476.42, which when constructed or installed will be attached to an electric transmission or distribution line or attached to equipment which is attached to an electric transmission or distribution line, who has not entered into a power purchase agreement with a public utility, shall be subject to the notification requirements of subsection 2. 2. No later than thirty days prior to commencement of the construction or installation of an alternate energy production facility as described in subsection 1, the owner of the facility shall provide written notice to the public utility within whose service territory the facility is to be located of the owner’s intent to construct or install the facility, the type of facility to be constructed or installed, and the date that the facility is anticipated to commence operation.