Tailgater Session June 10th – Come Chat OPALCO will soon be undertaking a a project on Turtleback Mountain to remove Douglas fir along the powerline corridor and replace power poles. This project, in collaboration with the San Juan County Land Bank, will serve two purposes: securing the safety and reliability of the power supply to  Continue Reading

“I am pleased to see this Project come online,” said Friday Harbor Mayor Farhad Ghatan. “It is incumbent on us to do what we can to use renewable resources. It is not only environmentally beneficial but provides a benefit to our ratepayers.” Next week the Town of Friday Harbor will activate its first solar power  Continue Reading

Opalco Board Approves Additional Covid-19 Relief Measures Commercial members in need can apply for base fee waiver We are all in this together. OPALCO is very concerned about how its members are getting along during this pandemic and is digging deep to put any and all available resources into helping members to pay their power  Continue Reading

Opalco Board Election Results: Dauciunas And Madsen 20 Voters Get $50 Bill Credits! OPALCO’S uncontested election drew 1,373 voters, a good 12% of the membership—and a quorum. Members elected Vince Dauciunas to a three-year term with 1,270 votes; and Mark Madsen to a two-year term with 1,186 votes. The staggered terms were created so that,  Continue Reading

The OPALCO crew is still at work keeping the power on – while practicing safety precautions. On March 20th, the Board approved waiving late fees and has added funding to our payment assistance programs to support our membership. Through May 20, no one will be disconnected for an unpaid balance, but members are still responsible for paying  Continue Reading

Co-op Committed to Keeping Islanders Energized The OPALCO Board of Directors suspended late fees on member bills and service disconnects to support members affected by COVID-19 effective immediately and for the next 60 days. A full COVID-19 program is quickly being developed to ensure reliable power delivery in the islands as disruptions and human impacts multiply and  Continue Reading

First, we extend our sincere appreciation for the attentive and engaged turnout at the Mullis Center on January 12!  A quiet Sunday afternoon among busy families, threats of snowy roads and of course the Seahawks playoff game notwithstanding, about 65 of you responded to our invitations.  We were enthused by our smiling friends from Lopez  Continue Reading

Friends of the San Juans Ensures Added Protections for Southern Resident Killer Whales in Regard to Phillips 66 Refinery Expansion On August 29, 2019, Friends of the San Juans appealed Whatcom County’s conditional approval of a 300,000-barrel external floating roof crude oil storage tank and an 80,000-barrel external floating roof fuel oil storage tank in  Continue Reading

OPALCO Board Listens to Member Concerns, Reconsiders Resolution on Snake River Dams At the December board meeting in Friday Harbor, 18 co-op members participated in an emotionally charged discussion about Resolution 2-2019 regarding the lower Snake River dams and ocean health. The Board listened as members shared their opinions and concerns about ocean health, species  Continue Reading

Guest author Neil Stawski checks in again with another article on working toward a greener lifestyle… Going green is a lifestyle choice that many people are making these days, but it can be a major change that comes with a lot of effort. It’s not always easy to make big changes and stick with them,  Continue Reading

OPALCO Rate Increase Held at 3% Board to Share Vision for Our Energy Future When OPALCO members open their bills in January, they will be, on average, $3.92 higher. Although rates were projected to increase 5-6% each year over the next five years, the Board decided to hold the increase to 3% in 2020 in  Continue Reading

Co-op Members Get Paid – Capital Credit Checks Going Out When you become a co-op member, you become an owner in OPALCO. OPALCO is a not-for-profit cooperative which means any margin at the end of the year goes back into members’ hands. Each year the co-op tracks how much you pay for power and that  Continue Reading

Postponed – The Solar for Business presentation previously scheduled for today at Town Council has been postponed until next month. We will let you know the date as soon as we hear! Friday Harbor’s Mayor Farhad Ghatan would like the local businesses to know that on (This date postponed) there will be a Solar for  Continue Reading

Our local line crew is working on a large project to rebuild and strengthen the electric distribution line that connects Roche Harbor and Friday Harbor substations. The project included installation of 29 new 45-foot poles and 1.56 miles of new 3-phase distribution wire which will increase the capacity of our system on San Juan Island  Continue Reading

Get $30-$60 a month OFF your OPALCO and Rock Island bills – Time to renew your Energy Assist credit OPALCO offers monthly bill credits for members from low-income households through the Energy Assist program. Energy Assist gives qualified members a credit of $30-$60/month (depending on household size) and the same amount can be applied to  Continue Reading

On Tuesday, May 28th, leadership from OPALCO and T-Mobile met with Governor Inslee to share the Rock Island Communications broadband success story in support of the Governor’s new statewide broadband office and initiatives. With its robust fiber and LTE foundation in place, OPALCO is excited to help move some of Governor Inslee’s key initiatives forward  Continue Reading