A Message from OUC's Commission President
and General Manager & CEO

When you provide vital services like electricity and water to more than 254,000 customers, keeping your eye on the big picture is crucial. You must balance affordability with reliability . . .  and protecting the environment with investing in infrastructure necessary for growth.

Katie Porta Board President

Ken Ksionek CEO & GM

There has been no time in OUC’s 84-year history where we have had to balance so many different needs in such a heightened regulatoryenvironment. In 2007, OUC managed to not only maneuver through these challenges — we excelled.

We have some of the lowest rates in the State of Florida, the best
reliability, the cleanest water, a strong environmental record, an 89 percent customer satisfaction level, and our electric system is 60 percent underground. We were able to accomplish all of this because we stayed focused on the areas identified last year in our strategic plan — Outstanding performance, Unsurpassed value and Customer commitment.

OUC demonstrated our outstanding performance this year, and we were once again recognized for delivering excellence in reliable electric service in the southeastern United States by receiving the ReliabilityOne™ Award.

We also made good on our promise of unsurpassed value by lowering rates to our customers — an average of 2 percent for residential customers and 5 to 7 percent for our commercial customers.

In addition, we showed our customer commitment by going live with a major, multi-year overhaul to our customer information system and by building our Project CARE utility
assistance program past the $1 million mark.

In every area of our organization, our team kept its eye on the big picture and focused on balancing value, performance and customer service. This is not always easy, however, when you are serving a high growth area like Central Florida in a state with potential far-reaching climate change regulations.

When it comes to environmental stewardship and regional sustainability, OUC is leading by example. Our new downtown Administration Building and Customer Service Center is designed to receive the Gold level of LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) certification. When the building opens in September 2008, we will be the first commercial building in Orlando to achieve this status.

The experience we’ve developed in 2007 on this milestone project is already being put to good use in our community. Last year, the City of Orlando and Orange County approved the funding of three large-scale projects, including a new events center, an upgraded Citrus Bowl football stadium and a new performing arts center. OUC is working with all three venues to make them examples of sustainability incorporating the latest in green features.

Keeping our eye on the big picture helped OUC successfully maneuver through 2007 and build a strong foundation that will enable us to meet the needs of both our customers and our growing community.
 

Katie Porta Commission President	Ken Ksionek General Manager and CEO