Geneva’s electric utility gets national honor for exceptional reliability

GENEVA – The American Public Power Association recognized Geneva for the sixth time for achieving exceptional electric reliability, officials announced in a news release.

The association is a trade group representing more than 2,000 not-for-profit, community-owned electric utilities.

Geneva ranked in the top 25% of utilities for system average interruption duration, based on U.S. Energy Information Administration data from 2018-22.

The system average interruption duration metrics are based on how often a customer would experience a sustained outage and how long a customer can expect to be without power if there is a sustained outage, city spokesman Kevin Stahr said in an email.

According to the Annual Electric Power Industry Report, U.S. electricity customers had about 5 1/2 hours of electricity interruptions in 2022, almost two hours less than in 2021.

“This is a reflection of not only the hard work of our city staff and electric crews but also the city’s commitment to building and maintaining a reliable electric system,” Electric Services Superintendent Aaron Holton said in the release.

The association helps electric utilities track power outages and restoration data through its subscription-based eReliability Tracker service, according to the release.

The association’s reliability team compares this data to national statistics tracked by the U.S. Energy Information Administration for all types of electric utilities.

“These utilities are the best of the best when it comes to keeping the lights on,” Paul Zummo said in the release. Zummo is director of research and development for the American Public Power Association.

“These communities should be proud of their local power providers and appreciate the hard work that goes into earning this recognition,” Zummo said in the release.

Nationwide, the average public power customer has experienced service disruptions for less than half the amount of time than private utility customers, according to the release.

More information about the city’s electric utility is available online at https://www.geneva.il.us/282/Electric.