FAQs

A consumer wishing to receive electrical service from VEA must first become a member. Contact the main office at (775) 727-5312 or stop by 800 E Hwy 372 in Pahrump to get started. You will need to provide at least one form of identification along with your social security number. After completing the application form, return it and any other required documents to VEA’s main office.

See our Applications page.

The main service disconnect (main circuit breaker) disconnects service at the meter base. It is a safety device used by your electric service provider, and emergency personnel (fire department, etc) to disconnect electric service between the meter and your house. If the meter is turned sideways or there is no meter, call the main office at (775) 727-5312.

The consumer, or their contractor/developer, is responsible for providing the appropriate meter base (wall mount, overhead pole mount, or pedestal) and any trenching as may be required. Trenches must be inspected and approved by VEA personnel before any electrical conductor is placed in the trench. For VEA personnel to perform the appropriate installation connections, sufficient trench openings are required at each end.

Wherever possible, VEA electric lines will be constructed on private land. The landowners grant right-of-way easements for the cooperative to build there. Locating lines along highways or other public rights-of-way can make the costs of relocating such electric lines more costly for the members. Since VEA maintains ownership of all service conductors up to the meter panel, it is important that an easement be granted providing VEA with the appropriate access to those conductors, including the right of ingress to and egress from the premises of the consumer. This is not a takeaway easement and the property owner can still utilize the land in a manner consistent with the policies of VEA.

Deposits are required until/unless the consumer meets one of the following conditions:

1. They have established satisfactory credit history (12 months with no late payments) with Valley Electric Association or any other electric utility in the previous 12 months.
2. They are the surviving spouse of a VEA member who had a satisfactory credit history and they are applying for membership.
3. Pre-paid metering

Any consumer unable to meet one of these conditions shall make and maintain a deposit equal to two times the highest monthly bill at the location where they need service or a minimum of $200. New construction accounts will require a $200 deposit or credit reference letter and new commercial accounts will require a deposit of $300. Deposits will be credited after 12 months of good credit history.

VEA buys power from the open market, where we find the best price possible per kilowatt-hour. Also, a percentage of our power comes from hydro-dams along the Colorado river.

Yes, we currently have three plans:

• Automatic Payment option — This plan is an agreement between VEA and the member authorizing the co-op to automatically deduct your payment from a bank account. The member will still receive a statement from VEA explaining how much power was used and the amount the account was billed for that month.
• Budget Payment option — This plan is offered to residential members and allows them to pay the same amount each month. The member must have lived at their present address for the past 12 months. The member will arrange with the co-op to pay the same dollar amount each month based on previous power use. This plan can be used along with the Automatic Payment Plan, making it easy for members to pay their bills.
• Pre-paid Metering option — Pre-Paid Metering offers the members an alternative to a normal monthly billing statement. While a credit reference and deposit are not required, members must establish a pre-paid metering account with an initial credit of $50. Instead of receiving a paper bill each month, member energy usage is calculated and billed daily against a self-managed credit balance on their account. When the credit balance runs out, the meter automatically disconnects power. In order to restore the service automatically the member needs to have a $25.00 credit balance on their account. However, Pre-Paid Metering accounts will not be charged disconnect or reconnect fees. Once a credit balance is restored to a Pre-Paid Metering account, the power will be automatically turned back on within minutes.

Your Cooperative conducts monthly Board Meetings to discuss and act upon the business of VEA. Additionally, there are six district meetings each year in March and an Annual Meeting in June.

See our Events page.

You can call (775) 727-5312 anytime 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. We have an after-hours call center that will assist you!

VEA members approved the sale of VEA’s 230 kV transmission system to GridLiance in 2016, and the sale to GridLiance closed on September 14, 2017. As part of the sale, several business relationships were put into place between GridLiance and VEA on the effective date of the sale. Some of the business relationships include the operation and maintenance of the transmission system, reporting and compliance requirements to certain regulatory agencies, transmission planning functions and generation interconnection requests, and coordination with the California Independent System Operator (“CASIO”) on various levels. Some of these agreements are long-term agreements with terms as long as fifty (50) years.

This business relationship with GridLiance helps VEA to manage its overall costs to its member-owners, ensure that the reliability of the transmission system is maintained, and allow the opportunity for VEA to encourage and participate in the development of renewables within the State of Nevada.

VEA looks forward to a long and prosperous business relationship with GridLiance on behalf of its member-owners.

VEA requires all members to submit a Net Metering Application to VEA Engineering for approval prior to constructing any generation that will be connected to VEA’s electrical system. If you are interested in connecting a backup generator, a Backup Generator Application will need to be submitted to VEA Engineering.

A Member-generator will receive one Excess Energy Credit from VEA for each kilowatt-hour (kWh) of excess energy generated by the Member-generator’s Net-metering System. The Excess Energy Credit is seventy-five percent (75%) of the Retail Rate of which the Member-generator pays VEA for delivered energy. This credit can be applied to energy offset only. Any remaining Excess Energy Credits available at the end of the current billing period will be carried forward to the next billing period until September. At this time, any remaining Excess Energy Credits will be forfeited to VEA. For further details on the Excess Energy Credit or “Grandfathered” generation accounts, please review the current Net Metering Policy.

That’s easy. All you need to do is come to our office at 800 Highway 372 in Pahrump. You will be asked to complete an application for service, which can be downloaded by clicking here: Application for Service.