Dickson Electric System General Manager Darrell Gillespie says the utility has started creating its new broadband division and expects to begin providing retail services to the first customers in a couple months.
Gillespie was presenting the DES annual report to the Dickson City Council at its Feb. 6 meeting and was asked for an update on the broadband project by Mayor Don L. Weiss Jr.
“We’ve made a lot of progress since the last time I had the opportunity to speak to the council,” Gillespie said. “We’ve let contracts go for main line construction of our fiber build and the installers that will be installing fiber to the homes. Engineering design work’s being worked on. They’re doing approximately 80 miles a week right now and, of course, there’s 2,700 miles to go. So, it’s going to take a while to get there.”
DES already has fiberoptic lines installed to schools and some other locations, and Gillespie said it will be another couple months before the service begins in homes.
“It probably will not be but maybe another two months before we’ll actually be in people’s homes, making a lot of installs,” Gillespie said. “We have some customers, but we’ll actually be providing retail service at that time.”
Gillespie did not identify specific areas he expects service to be available in initially but in a prior update to the council said construction would begin simultaneously in urban and rural parts of the service area.
“We have a brand new broadband division manager, an operations manager and we’re building that team,” Gillespie said. “And they’re making tremendous progress in getting a very large project off the ground and moving.”
DES has used bonds to generate $50 million for the creation of the broadband service and Gillespie has said competitive internet packages will be available to every home, business and industry in the five counties served by Dickson Electric.
On its website, DES identifies Ronnie Sagar as the new broadband director and George Benjamin as broadband operations manager with other positions currently being filled.
In his January update, Sagar says DES “will be finalizing the design work with Ervin Cable Construction and releasing the color-coded phase map allowing us to finally answer your number one question: When will it be available in my area?”
Sagar says the division has a new space and will begin acquiring the materials it needs to begin installing the new fiber lines.
“We’ve recently secured a warehouse facility nearby and have executed a lease agreement with a community partner to rent a space in the industrial park,” Sagar says in an update dated January 2023. “Over the coming weeks, we will be working with Wesco on procurement of material to begin filling our new facility. Trucks will soon be rolling out and we’ll be hanging fiber this spring!”
For updates, information and frequently asked questions on Dickson Electric System’s broadband project, visit dicksonelectric.com/fiber20/.
In presenting Dickson Electric System’s annual report to the council, Gillespie said the utility’s consumers increased from 36,629 to 37,079 in the fiscal year ending June 30, 2022. During that period, kilowatt-hour sales increased 1.28 percent with operating revenues growing 7.91 percent from $84,749,816 to $91,451,727.
Of the utility’s expenses, power purchased from the Tennessee Valley Authority accounted for $68,166,531 (74.44 percent of revenues), operating expenses were $7,743,889 (8.46 percent) and maintenance expenses were $5,685,895 (6.21 percent). The utility showed net revenue of $4,387,290.
