Grand Valley Power is a cooperative. Member owned. When we save, you save. We’re dedicated to doing the right thing, and delivering value to all we serve, even in tough economic conditions.
Last year, power costs climbed higher than anyone expected. At the same time, Grand Valley Power sold fewer kilowatt hours — which meant revenue for the year was lower than projected. But even in a tough year, we hit or exceeded our financial targets. We increased the amount of equity (assets minus liabilities) on our books to more than 40%, and did not raise rates.
How did we do it? A large part of the credit goes to the cost-conscious mindset of Grand Valley Power’s team members. They found ways to save internally while continuing to deliver safe and reliable electricity to our members without compromising service. It’s a testament to the values that our employees uphold — accountability, stewardship, and service.
But as much as we do, you can help us do more.
SAVING STARTS AT THE MAILBOX More than 2,000 Grand Valley Power consumers participate in paperless billing and automatic bank draft payments. These members quietly help the cooperative reduce operating costs simply by asking us to not mail them a bill. No paper statements. No return envelopes. No postage.
That may not sound like much, but it adds up fast. As a bonus, these members are not subject to the mercy of the U.S. Postal Service.
And the cost savings extend beyond postage and paper to check processing. Every month, GVP processes some 3,600 paper bills. That means our employees have to open 3,600 envelopes and handle 3,600 paper checks. The single most expensive component of payment processing is a check that doesn’t clear. The second most expensive? I’ve always heard that it is a check that does clear. This is expensive because paper checks require multiple staff members to manually handle a single piece of paper.
Compare that to automatic bank draft payments, or electronic funds transfers. EFTs cost Grand Valley Power next to nothing to process. One employee can transfer an electronic file and process thousands of payments with minimal effort. It is secure, and it doesn’t cost the consumer anything. Credit card payments, by contrast, come with a roughly 3% fee. On an average residential electric bill, that’s about $4 per transaction. Last year alone, credit card fees cost GVP nearly $453,000.
That’s money we absorb as a business — something we’ve always considered to be a cost of doing business. But every cost must be covered — ultimately in the rates that members pay. A big trend among companies is passing credit card fees directly to consumers. We haven’t taken that step — yet!
EFT, on the other hand, offers a perfect balance: it’s convenient, secure, dependable, and practically free for the co-op. That’s why we’re encouraging more members to make the switch — and we’re going to reward those who do.
SHARED SAVINGS: ONE YEAR, ONE CREDIT Grand Valley Power’s Shared Savings program is simple. Sign up for the program and enroll in paperless billing and/or automatic bank draft EFT payments. If you stay enrolled for 12 consecutive months, we’ll share the savings with you by way of a bill credit at the end of the term.
This program reflects our long-term commitment to efficiency and fairness. It’s not a gimmick. It’s a way for our members to help us reduce costs across the board and share in the savings.
SMALL CHANGE, BIG IMPACT Paperless billing and EFT payments aren’t just more sustainable — they’re smarter. They save you time. They save us money. And they ensure that we can continue to provide reliable electric service without passing unnecessary costs on to the membership.
If just a few thousand more members make the switch, we could save tens of thousands of dollars more each year and build a stronger cooperative for everyone.
It’s one of the simplest ways to make a difference. And it comes with a big reward.
Sign up for Shared Savings today. One year. One credit. One simple way to support your cooperative.
Author: Tom Walch, Chief Executive Officer
