Responding to recent tariff announcements

We at Sussex REC have received multiple questions about how the Co-op and its members may be affected by recently announced tariffs. Members have especially expressed concern for the newly announced tariffs affecting energy from Canada.

While there is still a lot of uncertainty at this time about how these tariffs will come into play, we want to assure our members that our agreements for purchased energy are locked in for 2025. Members should not expect a sudden change in rates this year as a response to tariffs or government policy changes.

Our Cooperative receives nearly 67% of its energy from resources that are member-owned and based in the U.S. These come from our part-ownership of our power provider Allegheny Electric Cooperative and its investments in carbon free energy sources within the U.S. Through Allegheny, we are part owners of the Susquehanna Steam Electric Station, a nuclear plant in Berwick, Pennsylvania, and the Raystown Hydroelectric Plant in Huntingdon, Pennsylvania. We also make use of long-term contracts from other power sources within the U.S. These resources will not be impacted by tariffs or trade disputes.

While the open market purchases that round out our power mix may be partially affected, it’s still too early to determine that for sure. Other tariffs affecting materials, like transformers, wire, or other supplies, could increase costs for us beyond 2025. This is difficult to quantify with the information we have now. Thankfully, we have the support of policy and energy experts at Allegheny Electric Cooperative and NRECA to help us navigate these changes. We are actively working with them to forecast potential effects these new policies may have on us in the future.