AEC Announces Affiliation With Touchstone Energy

The most visible indication of AEC’s new partnership will be the Touchstone Energy logo, which will soon appear on AEC trucks, signs, apparel, business stationary, and statement bills. The graphic symbol is meant to emphasize the cooperative spirit: the values that unite electric cooperatives throughout the country.

The most visible indication of AEC’s new partnership will be the Touchstone Energy logo, which will soon appear on AEC trucks, signs, apparel, business stationary, and statement bills. The graphic symbol is meant to emphasize the cooperative spirit: the values that unite electric cooperatives throughout the country.

According to Appalachian Electric Cooperative General Manager Greg Williams, it’s probably the most important partnership in the history of the Cooperative. “As of July 1 of this year, our Board of Directors made the decision to join Touchstone Energy, thus bringing an impressive array of resources to bear on behalf of our members,” he says. This affiliation harnesses the power and influence of a strong and vital network of electric cooperatives from all across the country—more than 750, at last count.

The easiest way to understand what this means, says Williams, is to think of it in these terms: “Touchstone Energy is like a co-op for co-ops It’s based on the same concept that our own Cooperative was founded upon: namely, that we can accomplish much more by working together. It’s not unlike a decision you might make to join an organization like, for example, the Automobile Club of America. Why do we become a member of Triple A? Because we believe that the benefits we receive through that affiliation will provide a good return on our investment. Same thing with AEC and Touchstone. The array of tools, programs, and materials we’ll have access to through this affiliation means that our members are going to benefit from this relationship in ways we are only just beginning to fully understand and appreciate.”

For members who may be wondering if AEC was “bought out” by Touchstone, Williams is very clear on that point: “Absolutely not. We didn’t cede any control to Touchstone when we made this partnership official; AEC is still autonomous and locally controlled by our members through their representatives on our Board of Directors. It’s really important that our members understand that fact.”

AEC is not the first co-op in the East Tennessee area to partner with Touchstone Energy, and they certainly won’t be the last. Holston Electric Cooperative in Rogersville has been a Touchstone affiliate for almost five years, as are a dozen other electric cooperatives throughout the state of Tennessee.

Williams says the Board’s decision to affiliate with Touchstone Energy had everything to do with continuing the trust relationship that the Co-op has worked so hard to build with its members. “This partnership will help AEC meet the challenges that lie ahead for the electric utility industry,” he says. “Touchstone helps us get there. Simply put, they provide the resources for succeeding at the most important task we have: that of effectively serving our members with programs and products that improve the quality of their lives.”