1 of 16

WV4EF

August Lunch

& Learn

2 of 16

WELCOME!

3 of 16

Agenda

IBEW and the solar industry
Current AEP energy cases

how they could impact your bills
What you can do

Solar Ethics Pledge - how to find a reputable installer in WV
Q&A

4 of 16

Guest Spotlight: Chris Samples of IBEW

5 of 16

INTERNATIONAL BROTHERHOOD OF ELECTRICAL WORKERS LOCAL UNION 466�CHARLESTON, WV

IBEW LU 466

6 of 16

IBEW LOCAL UNION 466 �CHARLESTON, WV HISTORY

Founded in 1914
Originally had 8 counties in West Virginia
Merged with Beckley Local 872 in late 1980’s and Roanoke Local 637 in early 2000’s
Our jurisdiction is now 18 counties in West Virginia and 8 counties in Virginia
Currently have over 450 members – 290 Journeymen Wiremen, 83 Apprentices, 75 Construction Electricians / Construction Wiremen, 9 Maintenance Electricians at the Greenbrier Resort

7 of 16

IBEW LOCAL UNION 466 APPRENTICESHIP

5-year program
180 Classroom hours per year – 900 hours over 5 years
8000 On-the-job training
Apprentices transfer every 1000 they are with a contractor
Self funded by our partnership with IBEW and NECA (National Electrical Contractors Association)
Every hour worked our contractors contribute $0.78 to the Apprenticeship on behalf of our members

8 of 16

IBEW LOCAL UNION 466 CHARLESTON, WV SOLAR WORK

Several Contractors doing Solar Work – the two biggest in our jurisdiction are currently Revolt Energy and Solar Holler
Between those just those two we had over 30,000 manhours on solar projects in 2023
These 30,000 manhours installing solar provides families with a living wage, health and welfare, pensions and helps support the small-town communities of West Virginia and Virginia

9 of 16

IBEW LOCAL UNION 466 CHARLESTON, WV SOLAR WORK

The future for our jurisdiction in renewable energy looks very promising due to the work of the current Biden administrations Inflation Reduction Act including incentives that are encouraging more clean energy companies to utilize union labor
We have three solar projects that could potentially start in 2025-2026 that will provide over 100,000 manhours of good Union paying jobs our jurisdiction – this is outside of the current solar projects ongoing
Raleigh County Solar Project – 90 MW solar farm
Nicholas County Solar Project – 250 MW solar farm with a 75 MW storage facility
Adjacent to Nicholas County Solar Project another 150MW Solar Farm Project was just approved by the Public Service Commission of West Virginia

10 of 16

WV4EF Updates

11 of 16

AEP - Expanded Net Energy Costs

What it is

AP and WP bought too much coal.

They ran power plants when they shouldn’t have been to get rid of it.

Lost tens of millions of dollars in the process.

Now they are asking the PSC to increase our rates.

CASE DETAILS

What it means

Ratepayers paying more for AEP’s mistakes

What you can do

Send a letter to the PSC

Attend the public hearing tonight @ 530 PM!

Write an op-ed to your local newspaper

Talk to city leaders and ask them to write letters

SEND A LETTER

12 of 16

AEP - Base Rate and Net Metering

What it is

AEP requesting rate hikes for many customers:

18% residential

25% churches

15%-20% schools

25% small businesses

Undermining NEM credits:

$0.18 -> $.05/kwh

CASE DETAILS

What it means

Would increase an average household bill by ~$25-30

Would make it more difficult to pay off solar panels

Some churches, schools, and small businesses risk closing or have to cut corners.

What you can do

Attend AEP protest on Thursday!

Write an op-ed, letters to your city officials, etc.

If you want to do something but aren’t sure what you can do, reach out to us!

13 of 16

REGISTER NOW

Interested in speaking at the protest? Click “Yes I am interested in speaking”

Join us August 15th @ 3 p.m. to tell AEP we can’t take anymore rate hikes!

Appalachian Power, 500 Lee St E, Charleston, WV 25301

14 of 16

Solar Ethics Pledge

15 of 16

Introducing the WV Solar Ethics Pledge!

Developed an ethics pledge

Trustworthy solar installers sign, showing they will abide by these principles

Protects customers and promotes great installers

Principles: Transparency, accuracy, accountability

View the pledge!

16 of 16

Q&A