What if the only electric utility in the area refused to serve you?! Or, what if they would only serve you if you paid thousands of dollars up-front, and then, they'd charge you 25 cents for each kilowatt-hour you used?!

Well, step back to the 1930's and you'd see people in the cities who had enjoyed the advantages of electricity for decades, while rural people were still making do without it or paying these exhorbitant rates and fees- even by today's standards- to get electricity. In those days, the big, for-profit power companies had little interest in providing this essential service to people in sparsely populated communities. It simple wasn't profitable.

But rural Texans, like most rural people all over the country, believed that where there’s a will, there’s a way. Around that same time, many members of Congress who represented those areas recognized the need, and the idea of the Rural Electric Co-op became a reality. In the places the large corporations had ignored, cooperation got the job done. The result was, and still is today, almost 1,000 electric cooperatives formed across the nation. These co-ops continue to provide top quality electric service and to be one of the finest examples of neighbors working with neighbors to meet the needs of a community.

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As a non-profit co-op, we have absolutely no interest in making a buck! Our ONLY reason we exist is to serve YOU! The Cooperative differs from investor-owned utilities and other power suppliers in that all margins (or profits) are ultimately returned to the member. These margins are designated “capital credits” in the bylaws, and are also referred to as “patronage capital.”

If you need service, our crews are never far away. NEC is staffed by people who live in the service area. That means we know the lines and we know the land.

NEC is partnered with South Texas Electric Coopertive (STEC) who provides the generation and transmission of power for our member consumers. Another partner is the Cooperative Response Center (CRC). CRC is a co-op's co-op and is owned by electric and telephone cooperatives across the nation to provide after-hours and emergency dispatching services. They help us to efficiently and effectively serve your needs 365 days a year, 24 hours a day.

Whether your service need is restoring power during an outage, trying to find out if we have a line underground during your spring gardening, removing a tree you noticed touching the power lines, answering a bill question, or anything else ....we are here to help. Most co-op customers are glad their electricity doesn’t come from a distant corporation. When you need service it’s nice to know you don’t have to call 1-800-Who-Knows-Where.

In the late 1930’s our nation’s government saw the need for providing electric power to the rural areas of the nation. Agriculture needed electricity, but large power companies were reluctant to venture into rural America because of the excessive cost involved in building miles of power lines for only a handful of consumers. On May 11, 1935, rural America took a giant step forward when Congress passed the Rural Electrification Act. This Act called for establishment of the Rural Electrification Administration (REA) which would have the authority to make available loans to groups of rural citizens working together to bring electricity to non-urban areas. These organized groups of citizens were called Electric Cooperatives.

Meetings were held throughout the various rural areas to acquaint farmers and ranchers with the feasibility of securing electric service. Prospective members were required to sign an agreement to buy electricity from the Cooperative when the lines were built and to pay a membership fee into the organization. The agreement and fee made them members of the Cooperative, and each member had one vote in elections for representatives or Directors of their Cooperative.

The Cooperative members elected a Board of Directors and they prepared and adopted the Articles of Incorporation with the assistance of legal advisors from REA. A Charter was secured from the State of Texas and a loan was obtained from REA in Washington, D. C., to provide the capital necessary to construct the initial power lines.

Nueces Electric Cooperative, Inc. was chartered December 7, 1938, by a group of farmers and ranchers who truly exemplified the pioneer spirit. From the originally signed 355 members, the Cooperative has evolved some 60 years later into a Cooperative that serves in excess of 11,000 meters utilizing over 3,000 miles of energized power line, and the growth continues.

NEC considers communication with our members to be a top priority!  There are several means by which we get important information to you!

Texas Co-op Power Magazine  -   As a member of NEC you receive this monthly magazine. While most of the magazine is prepared by our state association--Texas Electric Cooperatives, in Austin-- NEC prepares the center 8 pages and customizes the information specifically for our consumers. Be sure to give these pages a quick look each month for important information.

Messages on Your Bill - Your billing statement may have an important message printed on it each month.  Be sure to read it carefully.

Bill Inserts -  If we have more than a short sentence or two, NEC may periodically insert a separate notice along with your bill.  These contain important information so we encourage you to read these completely!

Website  -  Our "What's New" page of this website is regularly updated with important information. Bookmark our site or choose us as a "favorite" site,  and check in with us regularly for all of the latest happenings.