PAXTON, Illinois – October 14, 2011 – Eastern Illini Electric Cooperative, based in Paxton, Ill., celebrated the 1,000th geothermal system installed in the cooperative’s service territory on Thursday, October 13.
Geothermal systems are, according the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, “the most energy-efficient, environmentally clean, and cost-effective space conditioning systems available today”. Eastern Illini’s President/CEO Wm. David Champion, Jr. noted, “As a member-owned utility, we are always looking for ways to help our members save money on their utility bills. Geothermal systems definitely do that, plus they are great for the environment. In fact, I had a geothermal system installed at my home several years ago, and we love it!”
Simply put, geothermal systems utilize the nearly constant temperatures underground, via a loop system, to heat a home in the winter, and cool it in the summer. By utilizing the Earth’s built-in energy, instead of having to create it, systems can operate at up to 400% efficiency.
During the celebration, Champion presented the owners of the 1,000th geothermal system, John & Diane Dailey of rural Thomasboro, with a check for $1,000. The event also featured comments from Doug Dougherty, the President/CEO of the national Geothermal Exchange Organization, and Brian Houchin, the President of the Geothermal Alliance of Illinois.
Champion said, “While we don’t sell or install geothermal systems ourselves, we believe in the technology and the cost-savings it brings. That makes it easy for us to recommend them to our members. As far as we know, no other electric co-op in the country has installed 1,000 geothermal systems, so we are very proud of reaching this milestone.”
Eastern Illini Electric Cooperative is a member-owned rural electric cooperative based in Paxton, Ill. that supplies electricity to approximately 12,000 member/owners. Eastern Illini offers a full range of energy solutions, and is a member of Touchstone Energy— an alliance of over 700 electric cooperatives serving over 40 million consumers in 46 states.
More information is available at www.eiec.org or www.twitter.com/easternillini.
Eastern Illini Electric Cooperative is one of PPI’s ten distribution cooperative members.