Letters to the editor: July 22, 2007

Relief in sight for

MEA ratepayers

It has been noted with regularity on these pages in recent months how member-owners of Matanuska Electric Association - we ratepayers - have been misled, mistreated and misrepresented. We have endured incessant double-talk about fiscal efficiency while our money is squandered by management in shameless pursuit of a self-serving agenda.

Slick, deceptive and costly ballot packages tout MEA's alleged interest in members' opinions. Meanwhile, more dollars are flushed down the toilet on robo-calls and expensive radio and television advertisements designed to tell us the "right" way to vote.

Since none of this could go on without the approval of the board of directors -- our elected representatives -- it is worth noting that board president Lee Jordan, management's lackey-in-chief, is up for re-election in eight short months. With the current make-up of the board, his seat is all that stands in the way of member-owners reclaiming their electrical cooperative and putting an end to the ongoing madness.

The handwriting is on the wall. A low, uneasy rumble must surely be commencing at MEA headquarters, as arrogant folks who have overplayed a weak hand begin to quake in their boots.

Mark Kelsey

Wasilla

AEA doesn't take

position on MEA

On July 11, I spoke with Frontiersman reporter Russell Stigall on matters relating to the Alaska Interior Unified System Operations Project. the July 17 article resulting from that interview requires some clarification.

My primary concern is that the article, including a headline which is somewhat misleading, may create the impression that the Alaska Energy Authority has taken a position on MEA's proposal to build a coal-fired power generation facility in the Mat-Su Valley. This is not the case at all.

By virtue of AEA's Unified System Operations Project, AEA is focused on a collective planning process for future Railbelt power generation and transmission development. The purpose of bringing all Railbelt utilities together in the USO Project is to jointly determine the most effective unified operation that will help achieve the goal of long-term, reliable, inexpensive power for Railbelt utility customers.

AEA is not undertaking this project to determine how power is generated; rather it is undertaking this project to work closely with all Railbelt utilities, including MEA, to develop the best possible unified system that will fulfill long-term Railbelt needs.

Many power generation fuel options, including coal, wind, hydro and natural gas, are factors in this dynamic process through which Railbelt utility customers will ultimately benefit.

James Strandberg

USA Project manager

Alaska Energy Authority