One of the biggest ways being a cooperative member is different from being a customer of any other utility is that SAEC gives our profits back to you.
At the end of each year, South Alabama Electric Cooperative subtracts our expenses from total revenue and sets aside whatever is left over to be returned to members as capital credits. This month, SAEC will return $1.3 million to our members.
As a part of a member-owned cooperative, each member receives a portion of those capital credits based on how much business they have done with SAEC in the last year. The credits serve as a reflection of each member’s ownership of the cooperative.
Because SAEC still needs some amount of revenue to continue expanding our electric system and improving service each year, the credits members will receive throughout the month of December are not all from the last year. SAEC uses a hybrid system, meaning about a third of those credits will be returned from 2017, while the rest will be returned from previous years.
Including this year’s credits, SAEC has retired more than $16 million in capital credits. We’re proud to be able to give back to our members as a way of recognizing everything you have given us.
Unclaimed Capital Credits
Sometimes, capital credits may go unclaimed when a member passes away or moves without updating their address. Those credits can still be claimed by the member or an immediate family member. View a full list of all unclaimed capital credits. If you or a family member are on the list, you can fill out a form to claim those capital credits.