November 20, 2018 • Page 8 shop online at www.missourivalleyshopper.com Basin Electric, Members Unite To Focus On The Future At 2018 Annual Meeting Bismarck, N.D. – Basin Electric’s 2018 annual meeting of its membership brought in more than 1,000 member co-op employees, directors, public officials, and utility representatives, and featured several updates on complex issues and developments. As a cooperative, Basin Electric’s focus is providing low cost energy for its member-owners. The presentations shared how Basin Electric is evolving to meet members’ energy needs in the ever changing energy industry. Basin Electric board president Wayne Peltier, representing District 9 of Minnesota Valley Cooperative Light and Power, Montevideo, Minnesota, described the course of Basin Electric over the past 10 years. “We have gone from needing to build $1 billion worth of infrastructure to serve our growing membership, to entering into more of a maintenance mode today. Our growth continues, and there are bright points on the horizon for us to work toward,” he said. Basin Electric General Manager and CEO Paul Sukut said the shift from construction mode to operations mode coincides with a shift in the way Basin Electric does business. “We are greatly reducing costs at our power plants to be able to bid our power competitively into the mar- ket, and we are finding ways across our subsidiaries to operate more efficiently. The reduction in force we went through at the end of this summer was difficult on all of us, but we will come through this stronger and leaner,” Sukut said. “The changes we are making today will allow us to serve electricity to our memberowners at a competitive rate, even as our membership continues to grow.” Sukut said change is constant in business, and changes in operation of the Great Plains Synfuels Plant, operated by subsidiary Dakota Gasification Company, are being made to help the plant run more efficiently. “Over time, the revenue we make at the Synfuels Plant is coming largely from our fertilizer products, and not our synthetic natural gas. Low commodity prices mean we needed to find a new way forward to ensure the plant remains a net benefit to our members,” Sukut said. “We ran scenarios to find the sweet spot in operation, and we believe we’ve found that. We will be running at a reduced capacity factor, which will allow us to maintain our revenue stream but operate at a lower cost on the coal gasification side. Today, the plant is in a much better place financially than before we made this change.” Highlights: • Senior staff provided reports and served on panels regarding optimizing operations; markets and the membership; financials; and government relations. They addressed how Basin Electric continues its history of pivotal decisions and triumph over daunting challenges; as well as the continued efforts to build and maintain infrastructure for a continually growing membership; financial successes in a challenging year; and regulatory/ legislative updates. The panel discussions included Q&A sessions with the members. • The keynote speaker was Mark P. Mills, a senior fellow at the Manhattan Institute and a faculty fellow at Northwestern University’s McCormick School of Engineering and Applied Science. He co-directs an Institute on Manufacturing Science and Innovation. Mills’ message included the argument that the world is not in the midst of an energy revolution. “I deal in facts, and the word ‘revolution’ represents a magnitude of change. We are not seeing that,” Mills said. “There is a limit to how much energy can be extracted from any energy source we consume, and the upside in oil and natural gas remains much larger than in renewables. Technology in wind and solar continues to get better, but we will reach a limit there much more quickly than forecasters realize.” • The membership also heard from U.S. Sen. John Hoeven (R-N.D.), Sen. John Barrasso (R-Wyo.), Sen. John Thune (RS.D.), North Dakota Lieutenant Gov. Brent Sanford. • Capital Electric Cooperative displayed its new plug-in electric vehicle, named “Elektra.” The co-op recently purchased the Chevy Bolt to better understand the technology for its members. More information, including reports, video and social media feeds can be found at basinelectric.com or through #Basin2018. About Basin Electric Power Cooperative Basin Electric is a consumer-owned, regional cooperative headquartered in Bismarck, North Dakota. It generates and transmits electricity to 141 member rural electric systems in nine states: Colorado, Iowa, Minnesota, Montana, Nebraska, New Mexico, North Dakota, South Dakota, and Wyoming. These member systems distribute electricity to about 3 million consumers. Beware Of Scammers Claiming To Be From Social Security Park it in the CLASSIFIEDS and watch it go fast! MV Shopper MV Shopper M I S S O U R I VA L L E Y In Print and Online! • Call 665-5884 M I S S O U R I VA L L E Y Earn as much as $400+ this month & $120 this week Brady Christmas Tree Farm OPENING: Fri., Nov. 23rd • 9am Mon.-Fri. 1pm-5:30pm Sat-Sun 9am-5:30pm Choose & Cut Your Tree • Balsam Fir • Black Hills and Colorado Blue Spruce • Scotch Pine We sell the World’s Greatest Tree Stand 4 Miles East of Yankton on Hwy 50 Turn South at our Sign 605-665-4726 In the digital age, frauds and scams are an unfortunate part of doing business online. During the holiday season, Social Security has traditionally seen a spike in phishing scams, and we want to protect you as best we can. We urge you to always be cautious and to avoid providing sensitive information such as your Social Security Number (SSN) or bank account information to unknown individuals over the phone or internet. If you receive a call and aren’t expecting one, you must be extra careful. You can always get the caller’s information, hang up, and — if you do need more clarification — contact the official phone number of the business or agency that the caller claims to represent. Never reveal personal data to a stranger who called you. Please take note; there’s a scam going around right now. You might receive a call from someone claiming to be from Social Security or another agency. Calls can even display the 1-800-772-1213, Social Security’s national customer service number, as the incoming number on your caller ID. In some cases, the caller states that Social Security does not have all of your personal information, such as your Social Security number (SSN), on file. Other callers claim Social Security needs additional information so the agency can increase your benefit payment, or that Social Security will terminate your benefits if they do not confirm your information. This appears to be a widespread issue, as reports have come from people across the country. These calls are not from Social Security. Callers sometimes state that your Social Security number is at risk of being deactivated or deleted. The caller then asks you to MOODY MOTOR NIOBRARA, NE PATRICK HAWK 251 Spruce Ave • Box 260 Niobrara, NE 68760 www.moodymotor.com pjhawk@hotmail.com (402) 857-3711 (800) 745-5650 Fax (402) 857-3713 Welcome Dr. Sara Pepper, provide a phone number to resolve the issue. People should be aware the scheme’s details may vary; however, you should avoid engaging with the caller or calling the number provided, as the caller might attempt to acquire personal information. Social Security employees occasionally contact people by telephone for customer-service purposes. In only a few special situations, such as when you have business pending with us, a Social Security employee may request the person confirm personal information over the phone. Social Security employees will never threaten you or promise a Social Security benefit approval or increase in exchange for information. In those cases, the call is fraudulent, and you should just hang up. If you receive these calls, please report the information to the Office of the Inspector General at 1-800-269-0271 or online at oig.ssa.gov/report. Remember, only call official phone numbers and use secured websites of the agencies and businesses you know are correct. Protecting your information is an important part of Social Security’s mission to secure today and tomorrow. Pediatrics Yankton Medical Clinic, P.C. is pleased to announce the association of Sara Pepper, M.D. Call today to schedule an appointment. 1104 West 8th St., Yankton, SD 57078 605-665-5538 www.YanktonMedicalClinic.com