Our Mission
Our mission is to provide safe, reliable, and clean electricity to our customers at the best rates possible.
Our Team
Our team is made up of highly skilled and experienced professionals who are dedicated to ensuring our customers receive excellent customer service and reliable electricity to meet their changing needs.
History
1939 to 1942
Early Beginnings
We have been providing reliable and affordable electric services to our customers for over 85 years.
The Formation of McMinnville Electric System
In August 1939, during the administration of Mayor J. R. Taylor, the City of McMinnville purchased holdings of the Tennessee Electric Power Company in Warren, DeKalb, Van Buren, and parts of Cannon and Wilson counties. This was the birth of McMinnville Electric System (MES).
In organizing MES, the mayor and board of aldermen created a power board that would oversee the system and named Clyde Winters superintendent in charge of service operations.
$403000
Purchase price
$450000
Revenue bonds issued to finance the 1939 purchase
$37362.29
Cost of power
3211
Initial service area
number of customers with approximately 200 miles of line
6967980
Power purchased (1939 to 1940)
in kilowatt-hours from the Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA)
The newly founded system served a large area of Middle Tennessee, including:
Spencer
Liberty
Sparta
Dowelltown
Smithville
Auburntown
When Caney Fork Electric Cooperative was formed in 1942 to serve the rural areas and small communities, all of these became Caney Fork customers except Smithville and Sparta.
1952 to 1969
Expansion & Modernization
In 1952, McMinnville Electric System moved into the new modern facility that had been constructed on Morford Street. This building was a beautiful addition to the City of McMinnville.
Growth, Progress, & Change
When the City of McMinnville celebrated its sesquicentennial in 1960, the McMinnville Electric System was a mere 21 years old. Yet, the system was free of any long-term indebtedness.
During fiscal years 1959 and 1960, MES purchased 106,120,400 kilowatt-hours (kWh) of electricity from the Tennessee Valley Authority at a price of $473,538.56 to serve the areas of McMinnville, Sparta, and Smithville.
At that time, the system had:
173 miles of line
No long-term debt
Service areas: McMinnville, Sparta, and Smithville
At the end of 1960, the City of Sparta exercised its option to assume ownership of the system’s holdings there.
Fiscal year 1969 saw MES for the last time include the City of Smithville in its count of electric customers as they began their own municipal distributorship.
1973 to 1980s
Leadership Transition & Energy Challenges
In 1973, Clyde Winters retired after serving the McMinnville Electric System for 34 years as its superintendent and manager. Don Collette, a native of Rockwood, Tennessee, became the new system manager.
Navigating Change & Conservation
McMinnville Electric System weathered the oil embargo and energy conservation years of the 1970s and 1980s, offering our consumers such helpful programs as home weatherization and the heat pump program.
Many of our customers took advantage of these programs to better insulate their homes and to help conserve energy.
During this time, the system and the City of McMinnville experienced slow but steady growth.
By 1979, total system usage reached almost 180,000,000 kilowatt-hours (kWh).
1983 to 1991
Employee Achievements & Safety Milestones
In 1983, the system employees celebrated the completion of 1,000,000 employee hours worked without a lost-time accident.
In 1991, the 1,000,000 mark was surpassed.
The system employees were able to complete 19 consecutive years without a lost-time accident
MES and its employees were afforded many awards and recognitions in light of this accomplishment.
1999 to 2000
Facility Expansion & New Leadership
In 1999, the former Willmore Ford Building, located across the street from the MES offices on Morford Street, was purchased by the System and became the Operations and Engineering headquarters for MES.
A New Era of Leadership
On December 31, 1999, Don Collette retired as General Manager of McMinnville Electric System after 26 years of service.
Neal Cox served as Interim General Manager until May 1, 2000, when Rodney Boyd, who came from North Georgia EMC with 21 years of experience in the electrical utility industry, was hired as only the third General Manager/CEO in the system’s history. On August 31, 2024, Mr. Boyd retired.
2001 to 2004
Power Generation & Innovation
In June 2001, MES became one of the state’s first power systems to become both a distributor and a supplier of electrical power to the Tennessee Valley Authority.
Expanding Local Generation Capacity
11 two-megawatt diesel generators
were installed at the utility’s East McMinnville Substation, located in an industrial section of the city.
MES contracted to provide
20 megawatts
of power to TVA
with an additional
2 megawatts
reserved for backup to ensure reliability.
This generating facility is used during times of peak load or power supply shortages and can generate power for roughly
45% of MES’s peak load—enough to power all homes in McMinnville during an energy crisis.
Advancing Renewable Energy
In 2004, MES became the first municipal electric system in the United States to generate electricity using a clean-burning fuel made primarily from soybeans (biodiesel).
The McMinnville biodiesel Project was a collaborative effort among:
McMinnville Electric System
EmeraChem
U.S. Department of Energy
American Public Power Association (APPA)
Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA)
Tennessee Soybean Growers Association
Stowers Caterpillar
University of Tennessee
To date, the biodiesel generator has achieved:
Over 1000
hours of operation
187500
gallons of 100% biodiesel used
1500000
kilowatt-hours of clean, renewable power produced
2012
Embracing Alternative Energy
In September 2012, MES installed 4 electric vehicle chargers in anticipation of the need for alternative fueling stations. The chargers were dedicated on September 25, 2012.
These stations placed McMinnville on the map—literally. The coordinates of MES’s charging stations were loaded into the Department of Energy’s Alternative Fuel Stops Database, marking an important step toward embracing emerging energy technologies and supporting a more sustainable future.
2024 & Beyond
Our Future
In 2024 Brittany Davis became the fourth general manager and the first female general manager in MES’ history.
MES has been awarded SEP and RP3 designations multiple times, illustrating dedication to energy conservation and efficiency. The new construction of the Bybee Branch Substation is set to go live in 2027, with the East Substation upgrade set to go live in 2028.
