Withlacoochee River Electric Cooperative

Withlacoochee River Electric Cooperative is a nonprofit electric utility company that serves residents of Florida s Citrus, Hernando, Pasco, Polk and Sumter counties. WREC is a member of a cooperative power network that provides service to more than 650,000 customers in nearly 50 counties. The nonprofit utility was first organized in August 1941, when a group asked the Rural Electrification Administration for a loan to begin construction of an electric system. The first loan was approved in December 1945 but was repealed just a few days later when the United States entered World War II. After the conclusion of the war in 1945, the loan application was resubmitted and approved. The first member was connected in April 1947. The first operating report ending on May 31, 1947, reflected sales of 862 kilowatts per hour at a cost of 19 cents per unit. Today the cooperative s energy sales exceed 200 million kilowatts per month at a cost of less than 8 cents per kilowatt.