Resources

A lack of familiarity with the issues being discussed and specialized terminology can pose a barrier to member-owners interested in becoming more engaged with the work of their electric cooperative. This page provides short explainers that help illuminate key issues, a glossary of frequently used terms, and a list of common acronyms used in discussions of Alaska’s electric cooperatives.

Glossary

Alaska Energy Authority

A public corporation tasked with reducing the cost of energy in Alaska. AEA administers the Power-Cost Equalization Program. It shares a board and staff with the Alaska Industrial Development and Export Authority (AIDEA).

Bradley Lake

Hydroelectric generation project owned by the Alaska Energy Authority and jointly operated by the Railbelt electric utilities through the Bradley Lake Project Management Committee (BMPC). Bradley Lake provides about 10 percent of the Railbelt’s electric power, divided among the five utilities.

Economic Dispatch

This is a system where demand for electricity is met with the lowest-cost generation available, regardless of whether the generation is owned by the utility delivering the power. Economic dispatch requires a unified power system, adequate transmission capacity, and a central operator to oversee the system.

Net metering

Net metering is the billing process that allows customers with renewable power generating systems (such as solar panels) to sell surplus energy produced by their system back to the utility. Alaskan utilities can only derive a certain percentage of their power from net metering.

Renewable Portfolio Standards (RPS)

Policies (enacted at the state level) that require or encourage electric utilities to meet a specified percentage of customer demand with power generated by renewable energy resources (such as hydro, solar, or wind). See Explainer for more details.

Railbelt Utilities

Term used to identify electric utilities serving the area from Homer to Fairbanks (the so-called Railbelt Region). There are 5 major Railbelt Utilities—CEA, GVEA, HEA, MEA, and Seward Electric.

Acronyms

AEA—Alaska Energy Authority

See glossary.

CEA—Chugach Electric Association

Electric cooperative Serving the Anchorage region.

ERO—Electric Reliability Organization

See explainer and glossary for more on EROs.

GVEA—Golden Valley Electric Association

Electric cooperative serving Fairbanks and surrounding regions.

HEA—Homer Electric Association

Electric cooperative serving parts of the Kenai Peninsula.

M L & P—Municipal Light and Power

Electric utility formerly serving downtown Anchorage, bought by Chugach Electric in 2019-20.

MEA—Matanuska Electric Association

Electric cooperative serving the Mat-Su Valley.

PCE—Power Cost Equalization

Explainer coming soon.

RPS—Renewable Portfolio Standards

See glossary.

RCA—Regulatory Commission of Alaska.

State agency responsible for regulating Alaskan utilities.

RRC—Railbelt Reliability Council

ERO created in 2022 to coordinate planning and distribution among the Railbelt utilities.