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Friday, July 5th, 2019

Midwest Electric steps away from merger talk

By Tom Stankard
Discussions about merging Paulding Putnam Electric Cooperative and Midwest Electric have ended.
A study was conducted to see if merging would reduce costs by streamlining the two organizations into one, according to a PPEC news release.
After board members reviewed the study results, they decided it was best to keep the cooperatives separate, said Matt Berry, Midwest Electric CEO.
"It was a risk-reward calculation. It just didn't seem to make sense at this time," he added.
Members will not see any changes, as both co-ops will continue doing business as before, he said.
The co-ops have forged common ground and maintained a strong working relationship through their shared service program, the release stated.
The co-ops share a communications coordinator and energy adviser, Berry said. The program has been so successful, they want to expand it by sharing more employees.
Midwest Electric serves 10,772 members in west central Ohio, while PPEC serves 13,063 in northwest Ohio and northeast Indiana. The two co-ops' service territories meet at Van Wert and Putnam counties, the release stated.
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