CEO, Roanoke Electric Cooperative
Curtis Wynn, CEO of Roanoke Electric Cooperative in Ahoskie, NC, has worked in the electric utility business for years. Wynn was elected Vice-President of the National Rural Electric Cooperative Association Board in 2017.
PUF's Steve Mitnick: Curtis, tell me about the area where you serve your cooperative members.
Curtis Wynn: Roanoke Electric Cooperative is in the northeastern part of the state. We're in North Carolina, not in Virginia. Roanoke Electric Cooperative is one of twenty-six distribution co-ops in the state, and we serve parts of seven counties in northeastern North Carolina. It's probably one of the most economically distressed parts of North Carolina. We have about 14,500 metered accounts, which equates to about 13,500 customers. We call them member-owners.
PUF: How many folks do you have on staff?
Curtis Wynn: In the three companies that we operate, we have about sixty-one employees total. The cooperative has about fifty-five employees, then we have a non-profit subsidiary company, a 501(C)3, involved in economic and community development, with about six employees.
PUF: What is the biggest challenge?