The City of Monroe will celebrate the value of our locally owned and operated electric utility during this year’s Public Power Week, observed October 1 - 7.

“Public power utilities like ours provide safe, reliable, and affordable power to our community from an electric system that we own and operate,” said Energy Services Director Rob Miller. “Local ownership means public power is embedded in the fabric of our community and residents’ voices are part of the decision-making process. This week and every week, we celebrate the people that make public power so valuable.” 

Public power cities and towns in North Carolina provide safe, affordable, and sustainable electricity with a reliability rating of 99.98%. In fact, public power customers in North Carolina experience 40% fewer outages than customers of other power providers. And, when the power does go out, public power lineworkers restore power faster than other providers do.

The City of Monroe serves 11,825 customers with an average response time of 22.2 minutes. Our electric system consists of 25 field employees, eight substations, and 304 miles of power lines. We are committed to proudly leading the way toward a sustainable future with 98.45% of Monroe’s electricity coming from emissions-free generation sources.

“The City of Monroe’s Electric Division is locally owned, locally operated, and locally controlled, so we answer to our customers, not shareholders. We make decisions based on what’s best for our customers and our community,” said Miller.

“Public power providers are unique in the value they offer to their residents, businesses, and communities as a whole,” said Roy Jones, CEO of ElectriCities, the membership organization that provides power supply and related critical services to over 90 community-owned electric systems in North Carolina, South Carolina, and Virginia. “As we celebrate Public Power Week this year, we thank the men and women in our communities who keep the lights on and maintain unbeaten reliability for their neighbors.”

The City of Monroe’s Electric Division is nationally recognized as a ‘Diamond’ Reliable Public Power Provider, the highest designation from the American Public Power Association (APPA). The City of Monroe also received the APPA 2022 Certificate of Excellence in Reliability.

For more information on the City of Monroe’s electric system and its commitment to reliability, visit monroenc.org.