| |
|
UTILITY BOARD APPROVES LEASE AGREEMENT WITH COUNTY TO OPERATE ANIMAL CONTROL FACILITY ON BIG PINE KEY
|
07/24/2008 ~ The Utility Board approved a two-year lease agreement with Monroe County to operate an Animal Control Facility at Keys Energy Services’ (KEYS) decommissioned Peaker Generating site on Industrial Road in Big Pine Key at their regular meeting on Wednesday, July 23rd.
The current 20-year lease with Monroe County to operate an Animal Control Facility on Big Pine Key was set to expire on August 31, 2008. On September 12, 2007, the Utility Board approved the termination of the current lease upon expiration.
“During subsequent months, KEYS’ Land Use Committee met with representatives of Stand Up For Animals (SUFA), Monroe County, and citizens in the Big Pine Key area, to discuss the animal control situation,” said Lynne Tejeda, KEYS’ General Manager & CEO. She added that, “as a result of numerous collaborative discussions, Monroe County agreed to continue their contract with SUFA and KEYS staff developed the current lease for animal control services.”
The initial term of the lease will be for two years, beginning at midnight on September 1, 2008, and ending at midnight on August 30, 2010. The Board of County Commissioners approved the lease on July 16, 2008.
The Florida Municipal Power Agency is currently working with Sun Edison and KEYS to determine the feasibility of installing a solar array on the adjacent property of the de-commissioned Peaker Generating site.
The regular meeting of the Utility Board took place at 5:00 p.m., Wednesday, July 23rd, in the Louis Carbonell Board Room of the William Arnold Service Building, 1001 James Street, Key West.
|
|
TEJEDA APPOINTED PRESIDENT OF FLORIDA MUNICIPAL ELECTRIC ASSOCIATION BOARD OF DIRECTORS
|
 07/23/2008 ~ The Florida Municipal Electric Association (FMEA) recently appointed Lynne Tejeda, Keys Energy Services’ (KEYS) general manager & CEO, as president of the organization’s board of directors.
“Board members participate in regular meetings held across the state and are charged with setting the overall direction of the organization,” said Barry Moline, FMEA’s executive director. “Lynne has established herself as a strong leader on utility issues not only in the lower Florida Keys, but throughout the state of Florida. We’re honored to have her serve as our president.”
“I am pleased to be chosen to serve as an elected member on FMEA’s board. This organization is helping our state’s electric industry stay at the forefront of the nation by keeping its members informed on legislative issues and providing safety, training and customer service resources,” said Tejeda.
She added, “I think Benjamin Franklin said it best: ‘We must all hang together, or, most assuredly, we shall all hang separately.’ FMEA is a good example of this statement; by bringing together our local communities, the organization is assuring that our priorities remain focused on consumers.”
Tejeda joined KEYS in 1989, and prior to assuming responsibility for the day-to-day management of the utility in December 2005, she served as assistant general manager and COO. Tejeda holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in journalism from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, and a Master of Business Administration degree from Regis University in Denver, Colorado.
Other officers appointed to the FMEA board include President-Elect Ed Regan of Gainesville; Vice President Paul Kalv of Leesburg; and, Secretary-Treasurer Howard McKinnon of Havana.
FMEA represents the unified interests of 34 public power communities across the state, which provide electricity to more than 3-million of Florida’s residential and business consumers.
|
|
RZAD NAMED OUTSTANDING EMPLOYEE OF THE QUARTER
|
 07/11/2008 ~ Stanley T. Rzad has been named Keys Energy Services’ (KEYS) Outstanding Employee of the Third Quarter for 2008.
Rzad has worked for the Utility for over 17 years and currently serves as KEYS’ Compliance Administrator. Prior to his current position, Rzad served as the Utility’s Director of Finance for 13-years.
Rzad is responsible for monitoring compliance with external and internal policies and procedures, coordinating the activities of KEYS’ Land Use Committee, monitoring the progress of KEYS’ Strategic Plan, and coordinating Utility Board meeting agenda items.
The Employee of the Quarter Committee selects an employee four times a year for this award. Employees are considered for the award after being nominated by their peers and/or supervisors. Final selection of the outstanding employee is based on several factors, which include attendance, attitude, efficiency, initiative, and job performance, among others.
Rzad was born in Highland Park, Michigan, and moved to Key West in 1991. He received his Bachelor’s degree in business administration from the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor and his Master’s degree in business administration from Seton Hall University in South Orange, New Jersey. Rzad is also actively involved in the Key West Sunrise Rotary.
The Utility Board will recognize Rzad as the Outstanding Employee of the Third Quarter for 2008 during their regular meeting on Wednesday, July 23rd. His name will be engraved on a perpetual plaque that hangs in the William Arnold Service Building lobby, he will receive a $250 bonus, and an extra day off.
|
|
KEYS URGES CUSTOMERS TO CONSERVE ENERGY TO OFFSET HIGH ENERGY BILLS
|
07/10/2008 ~ Beginning with the July round of billing, Keys Energy Services (KEYS) customers will experience a 5.7-percent increase in their monthly energy bill as a direct result of rising fuel costs. For a customer consuming an average of 1,000 kilowatt-hours* (kwh) of energy, their July energy bill will increase from $152.65 to $161.37 – a $8.72 increase per 1,000 kwh.
“Although KEYS purchases a diverse portfolio of energy, the rising costs of oil and natural gas have to be passed on to customers,” said Lynne Tejeda, KEYS’ General Manager & CEO. She added that, “it is important that customers understand KEYS does not make a profit on the cost of fuel, rather, the price KEYS pays for fuel is passed along to customers at cost.”
KEYS utilizes the Power Cost Adjustment (PCA) charge to recover the fluctuating cost of fuel. The PCA was recently increased from $19.50 per 1,000 kwh to $28.00 to keep up with rising costs.
According to Barry Moline, Executive Director of the Florida Municipal Electric Association, “the causes of the increase in fuel prices are many, but for the most part fuel prices have increased due to limited energy supplies in the United States along with increased demand worldwide for all fuels, primarily from the growing economies of China and India.”
High energy prices are likely to be with us for a long time, due largely to rising costs of fuel and of constructing new power plants, according to the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC). Sharply higher futures prices, “may be the beginning of significantly higher power prices that will last for years to come,” said FERC staff.
KEYS purchases its power from the Florida Municipal Power Agency (FMPA) which works to ensure a diversified power mix and to mitigate future increases by hedging the cost of energy on the Futures Market. The current
power mix KEYS purchases from FMPA includes: Natural Gas (45.3-percent); Purchased Power on the Futures Market (24.6-percent); Coal (20.4-percent); Nuclear (9-percent); Renewable Energy (0.4-percent); and Oil (0.3-percent).
KEYS and FMPA are working to increase renewable portfolios at the local and state level, but technologies for producing renewable energy at the rate needed to supply power needs are still being developed and are not yet able to keep up with demand.
“While KEYS will continue to do everything in its power to keep energy costs low, our customers have the most direct and immediate affect on their monthly energy bill,” said Tejeda. She added that KEYS, “encourages conservation as a means to reduce the cost of monthly energy bills in light of this month’s increase and anticipated increases in the month’s to come.”
KEYS’ customers should consider these cost saving measures:
- Air Conditioning: In Florida, air conditioning is usually the largest user of electricity in homes. To conserve energy and save money, KEYS customers should raise air conditioning thermostats to 78 degrees or warmer during summer months. Customers should consider raising their thermostats to 82 degrees or warmer if they are planning on being away from their home for an extended period of time. Customers can save themselves the effort, and make daily temperature adjustments more dependable, by installing a programmable thermostat. Additional home cooling tips for customers to keep in mind are: every month, clean or replace air conditioning filters; once a year, inspect duct work and repair leaking ducts; always keep windows and doors closed when the air conditioning is turned on; use ceiling fans to aid room comfort, but turn fans off when rooms are not occupied; and close curtains or blinds on east- and west-facing windows during the day to reduce heat from the sun.
- Water Heating: Water heating is generally the second largest energy user in a home. To save energy, customers should reduce the temperature setting on their water heater to 120 degrees or lower if they do not use a dishwasher or if their dishwasher has a heating element. Customers can install a timer that can automatically turn the water off at night and on in the morning, and should consider using only cold water for washing clothes.
- Lighting: Customers should replace their most frequently used lights with compact fluorescent light bulbs. Compact fluorescents last longer than incandescent bulbs and produce the same amount of light using significantly less energy. Customers should always turn off lights in any room that is not occupied
- Miscellaneous: Customers should limit the number of household refrigerators; turn off personal computers when not in use; and limit the time a pool pump runs to six hours per day in the summer.
KEYS customers can also access a wealth of energy conservation tips online by logging on to www.KeysEnergy.com and clicking on the Growing Greener Every Day icon. While online, customers can sign-up for a FREE home energy survey, take a FREE online energy survey, and receive information on how to better track their monthly usage.
*Kilowatt-hour (kwh): A common unit of electric energy consumption, and the basic unit of electric energy. One kwh is equivalent to 1,000 watts consumed over a period of one hour.
|
|
KEYS’ PARTNERS WITH THE UNIVERSITY OF FLORIDA TO INSTALL WIND OBSERVATION TOWER
|
 07/10/2008 ~ In a partnership with the University of Florida (UF), Keys Energy Services (KEYS) recently assisted in the installation of a wind observation tower that will be used to collect high quality meteorological information during tropical storms and hurricanes.
As part of its storm-hardening initiatives, the Florida Public Service Commission directed all electric utilities to participate in collaborative university research on hurricane wind effects. The partnership with UF is a long-term effort to collect data from hurricane force wind impacts on electric utility infrastructures.
Locations for the tower sites were selected in cooperation with UF, and include utility properties as well as other state and private property. The wind observation tower within KEYS’ Service Area was erected on the United States Navy Property at Trumbo Point.
The data collection instruments for the wind observation tower are mounted on 46-foot concrete poles, self-contained, solar powered and require no external power source, and were designed to remain stable and operational in hurricane winds up to 200 miles-per-hour.
The wind observation tower is part of a larger regional network of 21 towers which will assist in measuring overland ground level wind behavior during the landfall of storms. The wind network will also report meteorological data to an online database via cellular network in real-time 24-hours a day, 365 days a year. UF plans on increasing the network to 50 towers by the start of the 2009 hurricane season.
The cost of sighting each observation tour is $25,000, with KEYS providing approximately $3,600 in in-kind donations related to the installation of the tower within its service area. In return for KEYS assistance, UF provided unlimited access to the real-time and historical data collected by the network. The meteorological information will be used for determining when it is safe for crews to work in the field before and after a storm and for the monitoring of day-to-day weather conditions.
|
|
