ORECA News
Oregon electric co-ops purchasing pieces of Pacific Power territory
- SVEC to Buy PacifiCorp’s Lakeview, OR Distribution Assets
- Oregon Trail Electric Cooperative Announces Agreement to Purchase PacifiCorp’s Wallowa County Service Area
- Blachly-Lane Electric Cooperative Proposed Monroe Service Area Expansion Announcement
Oregon Consumer-Owned Utilities Letter to Gov. Kotek
Idaho Power and Oregon Trail Electric Cooperative Announce Agreement to Transfer Ownership of Idaho Power’s Oregon Service Area
Bringing Light to Remote Guatemala
A team of volunteer lineworkers from Oregon electric cooperatives recently returned from a life-changing project to bring electricity to Aldea Coco, a remote village nestled in the Guatemalan mountains.
The team spent 12 days working side by side with locals to extend more than 2 miles of power line across rugged terrain. Armed with determination, compassion, and a deep belief in the cooperative way, they were able to electrify 26 homes, a church, and a school.
The project, known as Oregon Empowers, was the result of planning and cooperation between individual electric cooperatives in Oregon with the statewide Oregon Rural Electric Cooperative Association and the National Rural Electric Cooperative Association International.
Read more from Oregon Fox 12 News here.
ORECA Activities
2025 ORECA Mid-Year Meeting
Oregon Cooperative leaders met in Hood River, Oregon this past July and heard from industry experts on wildfire mitigation, political engagement and energy innovation. Click here to see meeting program.
Oregon Electrification and Leadership Summit
ORECA recently partnered with other stakeholders discuss opportunities and challenges around further electrification of our economy.
Oregonians for Affordable Hydropower is a public education campaign led by Oregon’s consumer-owned utilities — electric cooperatives, people’s utility districts, and municipal utilities serving one million Oregonians. We are standing up to a state-led lawsuit that threatens the Federal Columbia River Power System, the backbone of the Northwest’s clean, affordable electricity grid.
A federal court has already ordered eight hydropower dams to generate less power. The Bonneville Power Administration estimates the cost at $100 to $125 million in added costs, passed directly to consumer-owned utility customers. Lost clean hydro generation is often replaced by fossil-fueled power from the open market — more expensive, less reliable, and dirtier.
Our ask: We are calling on Governor Kotek to use the full authority of her office to direct Oregon to withdraw from this litigation, and to keep her promise to give consumer-owned utilities a seat at the table before decisions are made that impact our power bills and grid.
The campaign website — protecthydropower.com — is the hub for the public-facing effort. It offers:
- Fast Facts and FAQs explaining who is impacted and how
- Latest News on the lawsuit and related developments
- Take Action tools to send one-click letters to Governor Kotek and state legislators
Oregonians for Affordable Hydropower — Defend Northwest Hydropower
