CT Municipal Electric Energy Cooperative CMEEC

SUBJECT TO BOARD APPROVAL MINUTES OF THE REGULAR AND ANNUAL HYBRID MEETING OF THE BOARDS OF DIRECTORS OF CONNECTICUT MUNICIPAL ELECTRIC ENERGY COOPERATIVE AND CONNECTICUT TRANSMISSION MUNICIPAL ELECTRIC ENERGY COOPERATIVE November 21, 2024 The Joint Regular and Annual Meeting of the Boards of Directors of Connecticut Municipal Electric Energy Cooperative (“CMEEC”) and Connecticut Transmission Municipal Electric Energy Cooperative (“CTMEEC” dba Transco) was held at 10:00 a.m. on Thursday, November 21, 2024 in person at the Madison Beach Hotel, 94 West Wharf Road, Madison CT and remotely via Zoom. The meeting was legally noticed in compliance with Connecticut General Statutes and all proceedings and actions thereafter recorded occurred during the publicly open portions of the meeting. The following Member Representatives / Alternate Member Representatives / Municipal Representatives participated in person unless otherwise noted: Groton Utilities: Ronald Gaudet, Jeffrey Godley Groton Municipal Representative: Mark Oefinger Norwich Public Utilities: Christopher LaRose, Stewart Peil, Robert Staley (via Zoom) Norwich Municipal Representative: David Eggleston Bozrah Light & Power: Seymour Adelman, William Ballinger, Scott Barber South Norwalk Electric & Water: Alan Huth, David Westmoreland (via Zoom) South Norwalk Municipal Representative: Dawn DelGreco (via Zoom) Third Taxing District, East Norwalk: Kevin Barber, Michele Sweeney (via Zoom) East Norwalk Municipal Representative: Pete Johnson Jewett City Department of Public Utilities: Louis Demicco, James DeRusha (via Zoom) Jewett City Municipal Representative: George Kennedy (via Zoom) The following CMEEC Staff participated in person: William Butts, CMEEC Business Intelligence Developer Michael Cyr, CMEEC Director of Portfolio Management Candice DiVita, CMEEC Financial Analyst Lauren Gaudet, CMEEC Administrative & Sustainability Specialist Richard Gaudet, CMEEC Principal Energy Modeling and Performance Analyst Donald Hunter, CMEEC Information Technology Technician Margaret Job, CMEEC Director of Administrative Services The following CMEEC Staff participated in person (Cont’d): Michael Leep, CMEEC Field Technician/Operator Yuxin Liu, CMEEC Utility Business Analyst Pulat Matyakubov, CMEEC Director of Business Intelligence Chantal Maxwell, CMEEC Administrative Services Coordinator Patricia Meek, CMEEC Director of Finance & Accounting Dave Meisinger, CMEEC CEO Joanne Menard, CMEEC Controller Hao Ni, CMEEC Asset Performance Manager Ginger Palmer, CMEEC Cyber Systems and Security Manager Gabriel Stern, CMEEC Director of Technical Services Menglu Tang, CMEEC Energy Market Analyst Jay Urbinati, CMEEC Field Technician/Operator Leslie Williams, CMEEC Principal Billing & Accountant Heidi Winnick, CMEEC Financial & Treasury Analyst Invited guest: Russell Blair, Director of Education and Communications, Connecticut Freedom of Information Commission, in person Others who participated: Elier Alvarado, Jewett City Department of Public Utilities, in person Jeff Brining, Norwich Public Utilities, in person Aaron Brooks, Groton Utilities, in person Chris Gurtowsky, Novus Insight, in person Dave Silverstone, Esquire, Municipal Electric Consumer Advocate, in person Yi Xiang, Groton Utilities, in person Ms. Gaudet recorded. Chair Kevin Barber called the meeting to order at 10:01 a.m. He stated that today’s meeting is being held in person at the Madison Beach Hotel in Madison, Connecticut as well as via Zoom. Specific Agenda Item A Public Comment Period No public comment was made. B Roll Call / Voting Roster Ms. Gaudet conducted roll call identifying the voting persons at today’s meeting. Chair Barber confirmed a quorum was present. C Approve the Minutes of the October 24, 2024 Regular Hybrid Meeting of the CMEEC and CTMEEC Joint Boards of Directors A motion was made by Municipal Representative Johnson, seconded by Member Representative Scott Barber to Approve the Minutes of the October 24, 2024 Regular Hybrid Meeting of the CMEEC and CTMEEC Joint Boards of Directors. Motion passed unanimously. 24-11-01 D October 2024 Objective Summary Mr. Meisinger began by congratulating CMEEC Director of Technical Services, Gabe Stern, for celebrating 45 years of service to CMEEC as of November 16, 2024. Mr. Meisinger went on to review CMEEC’s October metrics. He noted that the Member Power Cost with Member Return was $81 per MWh for October, which is 24% below the budgeted projection of $106 per MWh for the month. He added that the Member Power Cost with Member Return is forecasted to be $94 per MWh for the calendar year, which is $21 per MWh, or 18%, under the budgeted projection of $115 per MWh. Mr. Meisinger also highlighted that CMEEC came in 51% below the regional benchmark for October and is projected to finish the year 45% below the regional benchmark. E October 2024 Energy Market Update Mr. Cyr presented an overview of the Energy Market Analysis for October. He detailed the previous month’s Actual Loads, Energy Costs, Hedge Volume, Natural Gas Prices, and Oil Prices and their impacts on the month’s results. He explained that the October loads were slightly above budget and that 0.8 MW of additional resources were purchased prior to the start of the month to comply with the Risk Management Policy minimum volume targets, but that no additional resources were purchased within the month of October. Mr. Cyr opened the floor to questions and brief discussion ensued. F October 2024 Project Portfolio Summary Ms. Ni provided an update on the project portfolio performance for October. She noted that the Community Solar Garden’s actual net benefit was higher than budgeted in October due to the distribution of accrued credits from the Tesla agreement negotiation. Ms. Ni added that the actual net benefit of the MicroGen project was lower than budgeted for the month because of higher than budgeted fuel, consumables, and maintenance expenses. She also explained that Transmission Project #1’s actual net benefit was lower than budgeted due to lower than budgeted Pool Network Peak Load in October.  Ms. Ni then specified that Hydro Quebec performed better than budgeted for the month thanks to lower than budgeted support expense payments and allocated staff time. She added that the actual net benefit for Energy Storage in October was also higher than budgeted due to lower than budgeted staff time and battery contractual fees caused by the batteries not fully meeting performance obligations. Ms. Ni reported that the October actual net benefits of both the DG Project and the Subase Fuel Cell were greater than budgeted. Municipal Representative Eggleston commended the Master Dashboard that was featured in both Mr. Meisinger’s and Ms. Ni’s presentations. G Budget & Finance Committee Report Possible Vote to Approve 2025 CMEEC Operating & Capital Budgets Member Representative LaRose, Budget & Finance Committee Chair, explained that the Committee met regularly over the past few months to examine various components of the 2025 CMEEC and Transco Budgets. He thanked the Committee Members, Ms. Meek, her team, and all others who contributed to the 2025 budget process for their efforts. Member Representative LaRose explained that the Committee conducted its final review of the 2025 CMEEC Operating and Capital Budgets at its meeting on November 1, 2024 and voted to recommend it be approved at today’s meeting. Ms. Meek proceeded to provide a summary of the 2025 CMEEC Operating and Capital Budgets. She then invited questions and discussion followed. At this time, Chair Barber entertained a motion to approve the 2025 CMEEC Operating and Capital Budgets. A motion was made by Member Representative Demicco, seconded by Member Representative Gaudet to Approve the 2025 CMEEC Operating and Capital Budgets. Motion passed unanimously. 24-11-02 H Audit Committee Report Member Representative Peil, Audit Committee Chair, explained that the Committee met on November 5, 2024 to discuss annual financial audit planning with CMEEC auditors CliftonLarsonAllen, authorize signatures on the CliftonLarsonAllen Engagement Letters, review the status of the multi-year Cyber Security Gap Analysis project, and receive a close out report on the Safety Audit conducted by TRC Companies in 2023. Mr. Meisinger added that after a robust Request for Proposal (RFP) process, the same TRC Companies has been retained by CMEEC as its new safety consulting company. I Governance Committee Report Possible Vote to Approve: • 2025 Joint CMEEC and CTMEEC Officers and Committee Members • 2025 Joint CMEEC and CTMEEC Boards of Directors Meeting Dates • 2025 Joint CMEEC and CTMEEC Committee Meeting Dates Member Representative Huth, Governance Committee Chair, explained that at the Committee’s meeting on November 7, 2024, the Committee voted to recommend that the 2025 Joint CMEEC and CTMEEC slate of Officers, slate of Committee Members, Boards of Directors Meeting Dates, and Committee Meeting Dates be approved at today’s meeting. At this time, Chair Barber entertained motions to approve those four resolutions before the board today. A motion was made by Member Representative Huth, seconded by Member Representative Scott Barber to Approve the 2025 Joint CMEEC and CTMEEC Officers. Motion passed unanimously. 24-11-03 A motion was made by Member Representative Huth, seconded by Member Representative Scott Barber to Approve the 2025 Joint CMEEC and CTMEEC Committee Members. Motion passed unanimously. 24-11-04 A motion was made by Member Representative Huth, seconded by Municipal Representative Johnson to Approve the 2025 Joint CMEEC and CTMEEC Boards of Directors Meeting Dates. Motion passed unanimously. 24-11-05 A motion was made by Member Representative Godley, seconded by Member Representative Scott Barber to Approve the 2025 Joint CMEEC and CTMEEC Committee Meeting Dates. Motion passed unanimously. 24-11-06 Member Representative Huth subsequently mentioned that a semi-annual review of the 2021-2025 CMEEC Strategic Plan was presented by Mr. Meisinger at the November 7, 2024 meeting of the Committee.  Mr. Meisinger summarized recent progress made on each of the goals listed under the six Strategic Initiatives in the 2021-2025 CMEEC Strategic Plan. He noted that the Board of Directors should consider revisiting the Strategic Plan soon and that it may be beneficial to convene in person at a strategic retreat to kick-off the planning efforts in early 2025. Mr. Meisinger provided an initial draft of what the agenda and budget for such a strategic retreat might look like, possible dates and Mohegan Sun as a potential venue. Discussion followed. At this time, Chair Barber entertained motions to amend the agenda of today’s meeting and to vote to approve the draft agenda for a strategic retreat of the CMEEC / CTMEEC Joint Boards of Directors to be held at the Convention Center at Mohegan Sun in early 2025. A motion was made by Member Representative LaRose, seconded by Municipal Representative Johnson to Amend the Agenda of the November 21, 2024 Regular and Annual Hybrid Meeting of the CMEEC and CTMEEC Joint Boards of Directors to include a Vote to Approve the Draft Agenda for a Strategic Retreat of the CMEEC / CTMEEC Joint Boards of Directors to be held at the Convention Center at Mohegan Sun. Motion passed unanimously. 24-11-07 A motion was made by Member Representative Godley, seconded by Member Representative Ballinger to Approve the Draft Agenda for an April 24-25, 2025 Strategic Retreat of the CMEEC / CTMEEC Joint Boards of Directors to be held at the Convention Center at Mohegan Sun. Municipal Representative Oefinger and Municipal Representative Kenned voted Nay. Motion passed. 24-11-08 J Guest Speaker: Russell Blair, CT Freedom of Information Commission CMEEC’s Obligations Under the Freedom of Information Act Ms. Job introduced Russell Blair from the Connecticut Freedom of Information (FOI) Commission. Mr. Blair used a slide deck to complement his review of the definition, types, and requirements of public meetings, clarification that public meetings are only required to be recorded if attendance and participation are offered online-only but not in- person or hybrid, and discussion of when it is and is not appropriate to enter, or to consider entering, into Executive Session as part of a public meeting. Mr. Blair then welcomed and responded to questions. He encouraged anyone with further queries to contact him at the phone number or email address provided in his presentation. K MEU Roundtable Member Representative Huth mentioned that South Norwalk Electric & Water and Norwich Public Utilities both contributed to disaster recovery efforts in response to Hurricane Helene. L New Business There was no new business. M Adjourn A motion was made by Municipal Representative Johnson, seconded by Member Representative Scott Barber to adjourn. Motion passed unanimously. 24-11-09 The meeting was adjourned at 12:24 p.m.