Author: Horry Electric

Horry Electric continually and carefully monitors energy use and load patterns on the system. When it appears we’re going to be close to hitting a peak, we go into load control.

Load control is an operational technique known universally in the electric utility world as conservation voltage reduction (CVR).

Load control is put into action to curtail load during periods of high electricity consumption. Load is curtailed by simply reducing voltage at the substation level. There is no impact on power quality, but the demand, energy and line losses are reduced on the entire system.

According to Electric Power Research Institute data, every 1 percent change in voltage reduction results in an average of 0.8 percent reduction in kilowatt load.  By reducing the load on the system, Horry Electric and sister cooperatives throughout South Carolina are able to avoid hitting ‘peak’, which is the time when there is a large demand on the system for electricity.

During normal load periods Horry Electric pays a few cents per kilowatt-hour for power. However, when we reach a peak demand or energy periods when the temperatures rise or dramatically drop, we can pay up to one dollar per kilowatt-hour. In turn, we must pass these higher costs on to members which may have an impact on rates.

The demand for electricity on Horry Electric’s system is greatest in the winter months between 6 a.m. and 8 a.m. and, in the summer months, between 2 p.m. until 6 p.m.  Please keep that in mind any time you start use any major appliances such as dishwashers, washing machines or clothes dryers.

The October 2015 edition of South Carolina Living magazine will be delivered to the mailboxes of members and subscribers later this week. It’s available online NOW!  

Horry Electric highlights include:

• CEO Column: Kickstarting the co-op difference
• Horry News: ‘Tis the season to give a little extra! Remodeling our Socastee Office;  Dig this! 811 and Get the credit for helping us take a load off!
• Safety tips:  Halloween and Electrical Safety for kids
• Feature: Waccamaw Market Cooperative’s success shows how good things can happen when people work together.
• Co-op Connections: You’ll be floored after a visit to this Loris Landmark

We’ve recently updated our MyEnergy Online member service portal. With the update, came increased security. As a result, your browser may no longer be compatible with our system.

The browser versions now supported by MyEnergy Online are IE 10+, Chrome 39+, Firefox 34+ and Safari 17+.  Access to the online member service portal is not possible with previous versions of any of these browsers. Members who do not want to upgrade their browser to a more recent, more secure version are being advised there are still  a lot of options for them including making payments by phone, in person, by mail, by bank draft or at any of the local pay stations  set up in Horry County.

Why upgrade your browser? Old browsers can be less stable and more vulnerable to viruses, spyware, malware and other security issues. Those are pretty obviously big problems – especially for people who shop online. Security alone is a very good reason to upgrade, but there’s more to it than that. Old browsers are slow and more likely to crash and they can’t display many new websites.

What browser are you using now?  To find out what browser you’re currently using, click here.

Ready to upgrade or switch browsers? Please notice that switching browsers is free and won’t take more than a couple of minutes.

Can’t decide which one to use? We found a helpful review of the Top Ten.

While Internet  Explorer remains a popular option for members, there are limitations with some of the operating systems.  For example, Windows Vista will only work up to IE9.

Google Chrome and Mozilla Firefox are other options being used by Horry Electric members.

Google Chrome: In May 2012, according to at least one statistics website, Google Chrome (all versions combined) became the most popular browser in the world (compared to IE, all versions combined). Chrome was first released in 2008, and has a number of advantages over old browsers like IE8.

How to Upgrade to Chrome:

• Go to https://www.google.com/intl/en/chrome/browser/
• Click on Download Chrome
• Click Accept and Install
• Wait a few moments and if prompted, click “Run“.  The browser will begin installing.

Mozilla Firefox : Firefox has been the main competitor to Internet Explorer since the mid-2000′s. Although Google’s Chrome has become more popular in recent years, Firefox is a great browser with many advantages over old browsers.

How to Upgrade to Firefox:Click here to watch this short video for step-by-step instructions on installing the Firefox browser.

What about bookmarks? 
Moving bookmarks from the old browser to the new one is not difficult at all.
For instructions on how to transfer your bookmarks to your new browser, check out the Browsing Better website. When you visit the page, click on the icon for the browser you’re currently using, and follow the instructions from the images that appear.

Chrome: Bookmark Instructions
Firefox: Bookmark Instructions
Safari: Bookmark Instructions

Horry Electric, the other 19 electric cooperatives in South Carolina and Santee Cooper put the Colleton Solar Farm into operation on December 21, 2013.

Located in Colleton County, it is the largest installation in South Carolina. One of the key objectives in installing the solar array was to learn what the impact of large scale alternative energy sources might have on a utility’s distribution system.

In its first year in operation, the 15-acre site generated 4, 687 megawatt hours (MWh), which was 5 percent more than expected in year one. The extra energy was enough to power more than 1,200 60-watt light bulbs for eight hours a day.

Curious about how it’s working?  Real time monitoring and statistics for The Colleton Solar Farm are available online.  Be sure to click on the How Solar Works tab to learn more about the process of converting the power of the sun  so it can be fed into the utility grid.

The September 2105 edition of South Carolina Living magazine will be delivered to the mailboxes of members and subscribers mid-month. It’s available online NOW!

Horry Electric local highlights include:

• CEO Column: Hurricane Season; Facilities Charge Increase; Outage Number Reminder
• Home Energy Calculator with updated list of pay stations
• River Sweep 2015 is scheduled for September 19
• Sons of Italy – Italian Festival in October
• Co-op Connections® Local Discounts: The Grand Salon & Gifts

On page 5 of the August 2015 edition of South Carolina Living magazine, we featured the Washington Youth Tour and the four students who represented us.  Nate Fata, of Socastee High School, shared his experience with readers. 

This summer I had the pleasure of touring Washington, D.C., as part of the electric co-ops’ Youth Tour. Of all the incredible experiences that I had, the most memorable was meeting U.S. Sens. Tim Scott and Lindsey Graham and U.S. Rep. Tom Rice (R-Dist. 7). Meeting them on this trip singlehandedly changed my view of our state’s national leaders.

On the Tuesday morning of the Youth Tour, I walked with my fellow South Carolinian peers to the Cannon House Office Building from the U.S. Supreme Court, where we had visited earlier that morning. Rep. Rice and his staff received the 10 or so of us from his district with warm smiles and outstretched hands. The congressman was very outgoing and hospitable, engaging each of us in conversation. He asked us about school, and what we thought of D.C., and only talked to us about politics when we asked him questions about local trade issues.

After meeting Rep. Rice and touring the Capitol, we met Sens. Scott and Graham on the back steps for pictures. They arrived shortly after, and were not only very friendly, but also experienced selfie-takers! Sen. Scott arrived first, and happily took pictures with all 73 of us. He cracked jokes the whole time, and even complimented me on my sunglasses. Sen. Graham arrived shortly after, expressing regret that he would only be able to take a few pictures, due to his pressing schedule as a presidential candidate. However, to my knowledge, he did not refuse a single person a picture or handshake who wanted one.

This experience changed my outlook on our leaders. In person, they seemed to be down-to-earth, funny, and easy to relate to, instead of the somewhat remote, distant politicians that the media, whether purposefully or not, often portrays them.

In his column published in the August edition of South Carolina Living magazine, Executive Vice President and CEO, James P. “Pat” Howle alerted members about remodeling plans that will impact members who use the Socastee office. The remodeling project is scheduled to begin September 28. 

CONVENIENCE is the name of the game in today’s fast-paced world, which is why we offer a variety of payment options—everything from mobile apps to My Energy Online to pay stations at many local banks to Bank Draft.

Even so, many members of Horry Electric Cooperative still value the time-honored tradition of transacting business in person, which, of course, we welcome.

It’s always a pleasure to see our members, both at our Conway and Socastee offices. In order to enhance our service to members at both locations, we will be making some changes over the next several months.

The Socastee office will undergo significant improvements which will entail a few temporary changes for members. Effective at the end of the business day on Sept. 25, we’ll be moving next door to our sister co-op, Horry Telephone Cooperative (HTC).

When the business day begins on September 28,  members will be able to find us next door  and will be able to pay bills and conduct other HEC business.

The Conway office, meanwhile, will be conducting business as usual on Cultra Road, with just a few minor, temporary inconveniences.

We’re still finalizing plans at this point, but promise to keep you posted on our progress through South Carolina Living, our Facebook page and other social media, as well as signage at both locations, of course.

We hope you’ll pardon the temporary inconvenience, but recognize that, as with everything we do at Horry Electric, it’s being done with better member service in mind.

The new and improved Co-op Connections® App is ready to be downloaded!

“The updated version is a great way for members to find deals in their neighborhood and while traveling,” says Toni Gore, whose responsibilities at Horry Electric include getting local businesses signed up to participate in the program. “The app also provides members with a digital card they can show at local merchants and at the pharmacy when filling a prescription.

In an effort to be more of an “all in one” app, quick links to  Locate Healthy Savings Providers, Cash Back Mall and the Appliance Rebate Finder have been added to the app. 

The app is free and available for iOS and Droid devices. “If you had the original version, you should have received an update alert,” says Gore.

The August 2015 edition of South Carolina Living magazine has been delivered to the mailboxes of members and subscribers and it’s also available online!

Horry Electric local highlights include:

• CEO Column: A few changes to better serve you
• Youth Tour 2015 Report
• Co-op Connections® Local Discounts: Support local businesses and save money!  There are more than 100 on the current list.