Approximately 1,900 residential co-op members participate in our Rate 11 load control program as a way for Corn Belt Energy to maintain low energy costs from our power supplier during the summer months (June - September). This program is at capacity and we are not accepting additional enrollments at this time.
Rate 11 Notifications
Rate 11 members can now be notified of summer interrupts via text message and email! Simply provide your cell phone number(s) and your cell phone carrier (AT&T, Verizon, Sprint, etc.) and we'll add you to our notification list. We will send out email and text message alerts a few hours before scheduled interrupts for those who have opted to receive these notifications. Make sure your cell phone is enabled to receive texts and that you check your email account's spam folder. Notify us if you switch cell phone carriers so you can continue receiving text alerts.
Click here to sign up for Rate 11 notifications.
Participants who don't wish to receive email or text alerts can call us at 309-662-5330, visit the outage section of our website, find us on Facebook or follow us on Twitter to see if an interrupt has been scheduled on a particular day. Often times, the decision to institute a Rate 11 interrupt may not be determined until 1:00 PM or later on a given day as our analysts review real-time usage data, weather forecasts and other variables in predicting whether Corn Belt co-op members will establish a new usage peak later in the day. Occassionally, a Rate 11 interrupt may be cancelled at the last minute as we continue tracking usage data and determine that a peak usage period is not materializing, which means that load control is not needed. Cancellation notices will be sent out via email and text, as well as posted online and on our phone greeting.
Program Details
Cooperative members on Rate 11 allow Corn Belt Energy to interrupt power to their meter during a few electric peak periods from June 1 through September 30 so the cooperative can help keep member rates stable. In exchange for allowing us to manage peak load, Rate 11 members receive a lower energy rate. Interruptions typically occur in the afternoon on hot summer days as our residential members increase their air conditioning usage. Interrupts will not last longer than 4 hours. Rate 11 interrupts will not occur on holidays or weekends. Under the program, Corn Belt Energy can interrupt power from June 1 through September 30 up to 10 times per season.
In order to declare a Rate 11 interrupt, we need to review electricity usage during the morning and track that usage over several hours to determine if a new peak in electric load is forming for the summer. Then a decision is made on instituting residential and commercial power interruptions. Please know that we work very hard to make this decision as quickly as possible, but many times the data we need in order to make an informed decision doesn’t present itself until noon or later. In addition to interrupts to reduce load during peak timeframes, Corn Belt Energy may schedule interrupts to help us to test the functionality of the equipment and load profile of all participants.
Members currently on Rate 11 may opt-out at any time, but they will no longer receive the discounted electric rate and they are not allowed to opt back into the program.
