|
|
|
Power FAQ
- How do I read my power meter?
- Where does AUB get its power?
- Why put pole on "my" property?
- What are the major causes of outages?
- Why is my power bill so high? (Is AUB
making tons of $$ due to higher gas prices?)
- What is the “availability” charge?
- What’s the relationship between AUB and TVA?
- How many electric service lines does
AUB operate?
- What does a substation, such as the
North Athens facility, do?
- What is going on with deregulation? How might it
affect AUB customers?
- How do I read my power meter?
-
Where does AUB get its power?
AUB purchases all of its power from the
Tennessee Valley Authority.
Back
Why put a pole on "my" property?
When AUB is installing or moving power lines, we must
determine pole placement based on things such as the allowable span
length of line between poles, the route that the line must take to
get from point A to point B, and the available surrounding land that
will allow proper maintenance of the equipment. Sometimes it is
necessary to run a line across a private property. In these instances,
AUB meets with the owner to work out the details of that use. But
typically, we try to site lines along roadways so that any problems
can be found, diagnosed and fixed quickly. (You can imagine the
ordeal of trying to find a tree limb on a line in the middle of a
stormy night when the line is located 300 yards out in a pasture
or wooded lot.) When poles are placed alongside roadways, they
are normally within the highway right-of-way held by the city,
county, state, or federal entity. Often rights-of-way are at
the edge of an individual’s property at the roadside; this is
usually what leads to questions of AUB poles being placed on "my"
property. This is understandable, especially since the property owner
is the one who mows, plants and otherwise maintains the property.
But as a part of providing utilities to the community, as longs as
electrical lines are above ground, poles are necessary and must
often be sited on highway rights-of-way.
Back
What are the major causes of outages?
Animals and trees are the leading causes of power
interruptions. Squirrel and birds often touch lines and related
equipment, which can cause a brief interruption, sometimes called
a "blip," or in some instances can cause the power to go out for an
extended period of time. Tree limbs that brush against power lines
cause outages every year for customers. That’s why AUB is getting
increasingly serious about the need for tree trimming. A single
tree, if not properly trimmed away from primary lines, can cause
repeated outages for hundreds of customers. Other causes for
outages are lightning strikes, high winds, and mechanical failure.
Back
Why is my power bill so high? (Is AUB
making tons of $$ due to higher gas prices?)
AUB is a Not-For-Profit organization. We do not make
margin profits from the charges we collect. AUB purchases
commodities—power, natural gas, or water—from a wholesale supplier
and then re-sales those commodities to our customers. The
difference between what we pay the supplier and what we charge the
customer simply funds what it costs us to do business plus some
reserves for improvement projects and emergencies. When you pay for power,
gas, or water, you are paying for what you used in the past billing cycle.
The more you use, the higher the bill will be. That's one reason that
conservation is important for homeowners and businesses alike. But there
are some other reasons your bill can go up relative to the past, such as
wholesale cost increases for AUB. When rates rise,
such as with natural gas in the winter of 2000-2001, that is usually
a direct relation to AUB’s cost for the commodity, not because AUB
is "raking in profits." For instance, AUB’s cost for wholesale natural
gas rose about 200% in the 2000-2001 wintertime. That was the
increase in what it cost us to simply get the gas to sale to the
customers. But the cost increase to AUB customers was only 46%.
Instead of passing along our wholesale increase dollar for dollar,
AUB actually took quite a financial hit to keep the big increase in
wholesale prices from further financially affecting our customers.
Back
What is the “availability” charge?
AUB has a cost associated with building and maintaining the
infrastructure of our utility systems. Regardless of the amount of
electricity, natural gas or water sold, there are fixed operating
costs incurred by AUB each month. The availability charge helps
recover a portion of these fixed costs. For instance, your mortgage,
rent, insurance, etc., is a cost that remains fixed month to month
even if your income changes. Some of AUB’s fixed costs include:
- Maintenance of lines and poles, pipes and facilities
- Interstate natural gas pipeline “demand” charges
- Natural gas storage facility “reservation” charges
- Safety and Inspection Programs for Customers
Back
What’s the relationship between AUB and TVA?
AUB is a power distributor. TVA is a power producer,
generating electric power throughout the Tennessee Valley using
fossil fuel power plants, such as the Kingston Steam Plant,
hydroelectric plants, such as Norris Dam, and nuclear power plants,
such as Watts Bar Nuclear Power Plant. The power generated is then
sent via high-voltage lines to local power distributors such as AUB.
We then distribute power to customers in our service area via
transmission lines.
Back
How many electric service lines does
AUB operate?
AUB energizes approximately 475 miles of power lines
that service 12,700 customers.
Back
What does a substation, such as the
North Athens facility, do?
A substation allows AUB to control the flow of power
in respective sections of the power grid. A substation generally
contains equipment to lower or raise the voltage of electric power
(regulators), interrupt electric service in the event of an emergency
or for repairs (circuit breakers), control power quality (capacitors),
and monitor the electrical distribution grid. Fences function as
safety controls for substations so that people and animals cannot
simple wander into danger zones. The equipment within a substation
manipulates power at extremely high voltages, often above 100,000 volts.
Never enter a substation for any reason unless a qualified AUB
field service representative accompanies you.
Back
What is going on with deregulation? How might it
affect AUB customers?
Deregulation is still being studied and will come about in some
form or another--wholesale, retail or both--even here in the Tennessee
Valley. No doubt, the experiences in California have slowed the pace of
legislation and other action that will bring about deregulation from
state to state. The move to deregulate power markets will be made
only after much debate and consideration at the federal, state and
local levels. AUB will certainly keep up with the issues and the
progress of discussions. We will provide input on a state and national
basis to make sure our customers concerns are being considered. In the
end, as with the cycle of any business, change will always take place.
We want to do all we can to ensure that the impact on our customers
is positive, because when our customers win, we win.
Back
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
