Category: News

The telephone number Claiborne Electric members call to make payments has changed. The new payment phone number is 855-937-1782. We are asking members who pay by phone to save this number. Members who use the previous payment number will receive a message with instructions to call the new number. The new payment system is easier to use, and we are proud to offer this service to our members.

Back-to-back hurricanes resulted in multiple Claiborne Electric crews responding to recent calls for mutual aid on the state and national level.

In mid-September, six Claiborne Electric employees headed to assist South Louisiana Electric Cooperative (SLECA) in Houma with restoration efforts after Hurricane Francine made landfall in their service territory, resulting in nearly 100% of SLECA’s members being without power. Foreman Rocky Lachney, Lineman Jeffrey Langford, Lineman Ryan Beach, Lineman Josh Dupree, Lineman Andy Mills, and Right-of-Way Specialist Chris Snell responded to help restore electricity for SLECA members.

In late September, six Claiborne Electric linemen headed to Quincy, Florida ahead of Hurricane Helene’s landfall to assist Talquin Electric Cooperative with restoration efforts after the hurricane. Talquin Electric Cooperative serves approximately 57,000 meters spanning from Florida’s Gulf coast to the Florida-Georgia state line, including portions of Tallahassee and the surrounding areas. Crew Leader Blake Robertson, Lineman Buddy Chandler, Lineman Dillon Walton, Lineman Clay Salley, Lineman Chuck Yocom, and Lineman Paco Allen responded to help restore electricity for Talquin Electric Cooperative members.

On October 11, six Claiborne Electric employees traveled to Florida to help restore power in the aftermath of Hurricane Milton. Our crews assisted Withlacoochee River Electric Cooperative with restoration efforts. Withlacoochee River Electric Cooperative’s service area is north of Tampa, and they had more than 32,000 members without power. Foreman and Crew Leader Rocky Lachney, Lineman Matthew Cathey, Lineman Chuck Yocom, Lineman Bradley Patrick, Right-of-Way Specialist Sam Hughes, and Lineman Josh McLeod helped with this restoration effort.

Hurricane Francine Crew (pictured above): Chris Snell, Josh Dupree, Rocky Lachney, Andy Mills, Ryan Beach, Jeffrey Langford

Hurricane Helene Crew (pictured above): Buddy Chandler, Dillon Walton, Blake Robertson, Clay Salley, Chuck Yocom, and Paco Allen

Hurricane Helene Crew (pictured above): Buddy Chandler, Dillon Walton, Blake Robertson, Clay Salley, Chuck Yocom, and Paco Allen

On October 11, Claiborne Electric Lineman Ryan Beach completed module III of the Association of Louisiana Electric Cooperatives’ Lineman Training School.

This school is held in Baton Rouge at ALEC’s office. The complete program consists of four modules, with participants completing one module per year. The program requires more than 150 training hours of classroom instruction, independent study, and hands-on education.

Module III includes training in advanced safety practices, metering, system power flow, advanced transformers, maps and standards, system protection, National Electrical Safety Code, advanced OSHA training, and a course on special elements.

In early October, Operations and Maintenance Managers Grub Faulk and Daniel Kimbell, along with Foremen Caleb Temple and Rocky Lachney, attended the Eaton Voltage Regulator School in Houston, TX.

The three-day school included classroom and hands-on instruction and testing. Topics covered included internal and external features, regulator theory and application, safe bypassing, controls and features, software, retrofits, tap changer maintenance, troubleshooting, and schematics.

Left to right: Foreman Rocky Lachney, Operations and Maintenance Manager Grub Faulk, Operations and Maintenance Manager Daniel Kimbell, and Foreman Caleb Temple participate in a hands-on class during the recent Eaton Voltage Regulator School.

In early January 2024, Claiborne Electric notified members of an increased cost from the Cooperative’s wholesale power provider, which was related to critically low water levels along the Mississippi River.

This dramatically increased shipping costs for coal, resulting in a force majeure event beyond Claiborne Electric’s control, and the Power Cost Adjustment factor used to calculate member bills was increased to cover the charges. As a good faith effort to lessen the burden on member bills, these increased charges, while paid in full at the time by the Cooperative, where spread over months to Cooperative members.

Claiborne Electric is pleased to announce that the force majeure costs have now been fully recovered! Members will see lower power costs through a lower Power Cost Adjustment factor on current and future months’ bills.

REQUEST FOR QUALIFICATIONS

DISASTER RECOVERY PROGRAM MANAGEMENT CONSULTANT SERVICES

Claiborne Electric Cooperative, Inc. (“Claiborne”) is soliciting proposals from experienced firms or professionals to provide Disaster Recovery Program Management Consultant Services in the event of named disasters affecting its service area and Claiborne Electric’s management declaring additional administrative assistance is needed.

The initial term of the contract resulting from this RFQ will be for a period of one year with the option of renewal for two additional, one-year terms. The contracted company will support Claiborne with disaster recovery efforts upon the execution of a contract task order issued in response to a declared disaster.

At its option, Claiborne may also utilize the successful respondent to manage various applications for Federal and State grant opportunities as they may arise from time to time.

A Request for Proposal can be obtained by:

• clicking here
• calling CFO Kathy Tanner at (318) 927-3504
• emailing kathy@our.coop
• downloading the RFQ package from Central Bidding, https://www.centralbidding.com

The deadline for submission of proposals is October 11, 2024.

Women- and Minority-Owned Businesses and labor surplus area firms are highly encouraged to submit a proposal in response to this RFQ.

Questions and responses related to CEC’s RFQ:

1) May proposers submit bids to Claiborne Electric’s physical address at 12525 Hwy. 9, Homer, LA 71040 with Attention directed to Kathy Tanner?

Answer: Yes, bids can be submitted to our physical address, but allow extra time for delivery.

2) Is there an incumbent? If so, who?

Answer: Yes, there is an incumbent, but we are not disclosing that information at this time.

At the Association of Louisiana Electric Cooperative’s (ALEC) Annual Awards Banquet, held July 22 in Baton Rouge, Claiborne Electric custodian Glenn Stewart was honored with the 2024 Color For Safety Award.

Each year, electric cooperative employees across the state are allowed to decorate their glove bag or have a loved one decorate it. This program is intended to help employees remember to work safely and go home to their families each night.

Stewart had his bag decorated in memory of his late nephew, Shayne Williams. Williams was a lineman for Echo Powerline. Stewart’s glove bag depicted Williams in his bucket truck.

At the Association of Louisiana Electric Cooperative’s (ALEC) Annual Awards Banquet, held July 22 in Baton Rouge, Claiborne Electric and its employees were honored with a safety award.

Claiborne Electric employees were presented a plaque for working more than 691,000 work-hours without a lost-time accident. General Manager and CEO Michael Marcotte (pictured, center) accepted the award from ALEC safety employees Ricky Melancon (left) and Derek Seal (right).

Three Claiborne Electric linemen recently completed a portion of the Association of Louisiana Electric Cooperatives (ALEC) Lineman Training Program.

Clay Salley, Charles Yokum, and Matthew Cathey (pictured below) finished Module One of the curriculum. ALEC’s Lineman Training Program is a four-year curriculum created to equip linemen for a career in utility line operations. The on-the-job course includes classroom and hands-on instruction. Module One includes education and training in power delivery, electrical systems, electrical theory, transformers, OSHA, applied mathematics, working in elevated positions, safety, first aid, and working with knots, splices, and rope.

Salley, Yokum, and Cathey are all previous graduates of Texas State Technical College’s Electrical Lineworker & Management Technology program.

Several employees also recently completed ALEC’s OSHA Accident Investigation and Record Keeping course. Grub Faulk, Daniel Kimbell, Penny Ferguson, Rocky Lachney, and Caleb Temple completed this course, which is specifically for employees with direct safety responsibilities.

Continuous education and training is a fulfillment of the fifth Cooperative Principle: Education, Training, and Information. Claiborne Electric believes continuing education is critical in every department for the cooperative to run at the most efficient level of business.

At the Association of Louisiana Electric Cooperative’s (ALEC) Annual Awards Banquet, held July 22 in Baton Rouge, Claiborne Electric Office Manager Candy Hardy was awarded the 2024 Kevin Reeves Cooperative Spirit Award.

Each year, ALEC and the Louisiana Member Services Association (LMSA) present this award to an individual cooperative employee for involvement in community service. Each electric cooperative in the state holding a membership in ALEC can nominate one employee for this award. Nominee applications are scored based on the employee’s community service involvement, community impact, and time involvement.

As a Court Appointed Special Advocate, Candy works directly with children who have been removed from their homes due to abuse or neglect. Advocates work as volunteers to make sure the best interest of the child is represented in court and in the home the child is placed in, whether it be a foster home or a relative’s home.

Candy has served as a Advocate since 2019. Duties as an Advocate include monthly visits with the children assigned, with each visit lasting approximately one hour. She participates in all DCFS calls and meetings which pertain to her assigned children. She attends all court proceedings for her assigned cases and prepares a court report for the judge prior to all court hearings. For each child assigned, she logs all contact with the child, parents, DCFS, and the home where the child is placed. Each six months, Candy conducts a wellbeing assessment for each child, monitoring the progress of the child’s family, health, and education.

Candy currently has three assigned cases. Most cases have multiple siblings, so she routinely has several children assigned to her. She does this work on a completely voluntary basis, in addition to her full-time career as Office Manager at Claiborne Electric Cooperative. She said several years ago, she was given a CASA pamphlet that she put in her office drawer. Every time she opened the drawer, she saw the pamphlet and feel an urgency to get involved. After three years of looking at the pamphlet, she made the call to start her training and become an Advocate. Today, she urges others to get involved. She said the program has an enormous need for more volunteers to be come Advocates.

As the winner of the 2024 Kevin Reeves Cooperative Spirit Award, Candy received a plaque, a $100 award, and a $200 donation to CASA made in her name.