Chances are most of us don’t even think about where our electricity comes from. We take it for granted, except when the lights or the TV won’t come on, then we expect somebody to fix it.
For Joel Ledbetter, it’s the stuff of waking up at 4 a.m., unable to go back to sleep. About a month ago, he became the general manager of the utility that keeps Clinton’s power flowing, the Piedmont Municipal Power Agency, based in Greer. Now, Ledbetter is on a “speaking tour” around the agency’s member cities to get everyone on the same page and inform the public about the value of PMPA power, generated by the long-standing Catawba Nuclear Plant.
In an environmental age when corporations are judged by being “carbon free,” PMPA keeps the lights on with a footprint that is 88% carbon free.
The member cities simply have to weather the next 12 years and they will be in a most enviable position - their source of electrical power will be paid off. It’s like the household budget not having a mortgage payment any more, but owning the house, and all the equity that goes with it.
Plus, Clinton and the other cities can sell to other utilities the supplementary power that its citizens don’t use - it’s an especially interesting idea for Clinton, where budget discrepancies are the subject of an ongoing audit and an independent auditor has issued a warning against continued over-budget-spending.
“Clinton is in a unique position because so much of its land is non-taxable,” Ledbetter said, and it’s reliant on utility revenues to balance the general fund. He took Clinton City Manager Tom Brooks, the city’s member on the PMPA Board, up on his offer to speak to the City Council on Monday evening (Aug. 7).
Overarching in his presentation to the member city councils, Ledbetter says they must resolve a lawsuit among the members that has weighed the agency down for 4 years. Basically, it’s about the division of shares among the member cities, highlighted by the fact that Rock Hill, south of the Charlotte metropolis, is so much larger than the other cities: Abbeville, Easley, Gaffney, Greer, Laurens, Newberry, Union, Westminster, and Clinton.
Everybody is committed to staying together, Ledbetter said, but the legal action needs to be settled; most recently, a judge denied a motion for a directed verdict that would have one side or the other declared the “winner” of the legal struggle.
Ledbetter says he is aware that 3 member cities’ representatives did not vote for him to become the general manager. He is committed, however, “to bringing everyone together.” Ledbetter has known PMPA board members for 10 to 15 years, some for 30 years, in his roles managing utilities in Newberry and Easley - he has 37 years experience in electric utility operations and 29 years as a PMPA board member.
Ledbetter is proud that PMPA actually reduced costs for its member cities by 5% and has projected cost increases, if necessary, at just 2% by 2029. He said his job is get out and “tell the story.”
And nuclear power seems to be on the uptick - in the continuing contention between oil, natural gas and coal (carbons) on one side, and wind, water and solar (green) on the other.
Southern Company just put its Vogtle Unit 3 into commercial operation in Georgia.
“This is a major step towards affordable, reliable and clean energy that is available 24/7/365. This underscores the important work we are doing in Congress to expand nuclear energy with policies that make sense for the regulation of nuclear power today, and the new technologies expected to seek licensing and deployment in coming years,” said Congressman Jeff Duncan (R-3rd SC-Laurens).
“This is clean energy for a growing Georgia,” Southern Company says.
And, keep in mind, it’s the same kind of energy that powers the City of Clinton.
