Choptank Electric and Choptank Fiber exist to provide reliable and cost-effective services that improve the quality of life for our communities.
Dear Members,
2025 was another exceptional year for your electric cooperative with safety and reliability at the forefront. We kept our promise of ‘members first’ by maintaining affordable rates and keeping power disruptions to a minimum. Choptank’s dedicated team of employees and Directors continued to make strategic decisions that advanced the services you know and trust.
Choptank Fiber was nominated again by you in 2025 as Best Internet Provider on the Eastern Shore and connected our 5,000th customer with expansion into all nine counties. The broadband subsidiary offers fiber service to more than 13,000 locations and launched its cell phone service last year, Choptank Mobile.
Concern for Community is one of the seven Cooperative Principles that guide Choptank Electric. We proudly supported many local organizations and educational programs across our service territory last year. Understanding that the youth will power our next generation of employees and community members, we provided scholarships, participated in NRECA’s Youth Tour program, partnered with Junior Achievement of the Eastern Shore, hosted Girl Power and attended career fairs for all ages.
We maintain a 99% reliability rating from the ASAI all while operating over 6,400 miles of electric lines in a safe, affordable manner. Choptank Electric Cooperative has served its members and community faithfully for 88 years and we will continue to do so many years into the future.
Mike Malandro President & CEO
John J. Burke Chairman of the Board
Mike Malandro President & CEO
CHOPTANK ELECTRIC COOPERATIVE
YOUR BOARD OF DIRECTORS
John J. Burke, Jr. Chairman, Cecil County
Jeffrey D. Rathell, Sr. Talbot County
Matthew R. Holloway Wicomico County
Amy Ireland Brandt Treasurer, Caroline County
Donna Richardson West Secretary, Worcester County
Robert B. Thompson Vice Chairman,
Douglas D. Scott Dorchester County
Robert E. Arnold Queen Anne’s County
Kristen E. Nickerson Kent County
Craig N. Mathies, Sr. Somerset County
COOPERATIVE LEADERSHIP
YOUR EXECUTIVE STAFF
Mike Malandro President and CEO
Paula J. Bishop Vice President of Human Resources
Lisa H. DeSantis Vice President and CFO
Valerie T. Connelly Vice President of Government Affairs and Public Relations
Timothy W. McGaha Vice President of Technical Services
Sarah M. Dahl Vice President & General Counsel
Leroy D. Sverduk Vice President of Engineering and Operations
The Cooperative Advantage
Choptank Electric Cooperative is proud to serve our community as a notfor-profit electric distribution co-op. We operate by the Seven Cooperative Principles that guide our decisions:
1. Voluntary and Open Membership
2. Democratic Member Control
3. Member Economic Participation
4. Autonomy and Independence
5. Education, Training, and Information
6. Cooperation among Cooperatives
7. Concern for Community
Cooperation Among Cooperatives
Cooperatives strengthen the movement by working together through local, regional and national partnerships. We are proud to be a member of the following cooperatives and associations:
Old Dominion Electric Cooperative (ODEC)
ODEC is a not-for-profit, tax-exempt generation and transmission cooperative that Choptank Electric and 10 other electric co-ops in the region own through our membership. ODEC provides the reliable, cost-effective, environmentally balanced wholesale electricity that we distribute to our members.
Virginia, Maryland & Delaware Association of Electric Cooperatives (VMDAEC)
Our membership with VMDAEC provides Choptank with staff safety and educational training services, regional events with other electric co-ops, publication of the Cooperative Living magazine, and more.
Touchstone Energy Cooperative
We are a member of Touchstone Energy® Cooperative Inc., which represents a network of locally owned cooperatives. With the help of Touchstone Energy, we can offer useful services to our members like energy efficiency and renewable energy tools and education.
ODEC’s Wildcat Point generation facility in Cecil County
CHOPTANK ELECTRIC COOPERATIVE BY THE NUMBERS
57,450 MEMBER ACCOUNTS
6,425 MILES OF LINE
8.9
METERS PER MILE
172 FULL-TIME
EMPLOYEES 92%
MEMBERS ENROLLED IN OPERATION ROUND UP
99.98%
AVERAGE SYSTEM RELIABILITY ** 209
AVERAGE DAILY CALLS TO CALL CENTER 12 seconds
AVERAGE SPEED TO ANSWER CALLS
120.6 AVERAGE TIME OF INTERRUPTION IN MINUTES* 1.47
NUMBER OF OUTAGES PER MEMBER
CHOPTANK FIBER,
13,596 Number of homes passed
Choptank Fiber, LLC is a wholly owned broadband subsidiary of Choptank Electric Cooperative, formed in 2020 at the request of the Cooperative’s members.
$63,000,000 Funds awarded from 25 expansion and infrastructure grants
Five years later, Choptank Fiber is proud to deliver:
· high-speed internet,
· cell phone service,
· in-home VoIP phone service,
· MyBundle streaming service and
· complimentary managed Wi-Fi through a mobile app to families and businesses throughout its service territory where traditional broadband providers would not build.
Choptank Fiber has connected over 5,700 customers with high-speed internet. With more than 2,000 miles of distribution fiber laid, service is now available to more than 13,000 locations. Since its first connection in 2021, Choptank Fiber has remained
ahead of schedule in every aspect of its fiber construction and buildout process.
Choptank Fiber Mobile includes standard and unlimited plans that can be bundled with any internet package. And with streaming now an option for our Fiber customers with highspeed internet, we offer the MyBundle streaming service for selecting and purchasing streaming providers.
As Choptank Fiber looks to the future, it will continue to serve as the hub for technology on the Eastern Shore by providing rural businesses and consumers with the services and education they need.
FIBER, LLC
605,750 Threats blocked by ProtectIQ
2,073
Miles of distribution fiber
+80
Net Promoter Score
FIBER ACTIVE CUSTOMERS
BY COUNTY
■ Caroline - 2,269
■ Wicomico - 715
■ Somerset - 650
■ Worcester - 644
■ Dorchester - 536
■ Cecil - 489
■ Queen Anne’s - 392
■ Talbot - 2
■ Kent - 1
CONSOLIDATED BALANCE SHEETS
LIABILITIES
MEMBERS’ NET WORTH
Margins $25,030,835 $25,968,519
Equities $179,375,838 $189,307,690 Total Members’ Net Worth $204,791,128 $215,660,664
The consolidated financial statements include the financial performance of the Cooperative and its subsidiaries, Choptank Services Corporation (CSC) and Choptank Fiber LLC. CSC is a wholly-owned subsidiary of the Cooperative which owed a 36.56% and 37.54% interest in Mid-Atlantic Cooperative Solutions, Inc. as of 12/31/2025 and 12/31/2024, respectively. Choptank Fiber LLC operates as a broadband internet & voice-over internet protocol (VOIP) business on Maryland’s Eastern Shore.
CONSOLIDATED STATEMENT OF OPERATIONS
Purchased Power Cost
Expense
Expense
Account Expense
& General Expense
Expense
$91,753,489 $101,856,537
$7,221,038 $7,764,894
$11,407,561 $12,365,159
$2,590,259 $2,858,530
$12,711,706 $14,307,952
$14,771,142
Deductions $963,679 $717,087
Expenses $161,911,346 $176,423,777 MARGINS
Capital Credits/Patronage Dividends
$674,374 Income Tax Expense - Deferred ($230,000) ($215,000)
Margins $12,337,867 $15,989,059
WINTER
January 23, 2025, at hour ending 8 AM with 318,640 kW.
Caroline $1,131,906.19
Cecil $195,151.81
Dorchester $676,963.78 Kent $271,561.60
Queen Anne’s $311,993.61
SYSTEM ENERGY PEAKS
SUMMER
June 24, 2025, at hour ending 7 PM with 263,853 kW.
NUMBER OF ACCOUNTS
VEGETATION MANAGEMENT
> TRIMMED 525 MILES OF LINE
> MOWED 364 ACRES OF LAND
> REMOVED 13,672 TREES
> RESPONDED TO 427 MEMBER’S REQUEST FOR SERVICE RESTORATION EFFORTS
> REPLANTED 174 TREES
> CONVERTED 528 ACRES OF LAND
Vegetation Management
Tree trimming and mowing around our powerlines and poles helps reduce outages and increases service reliability. We have partnered with Asplundh Tree Experts for over 20 years to perform local vegetation management for Choptank Electric Cooperative.
Chop-A-Watt
The Chop-A-Watt Home Energy Saver Program provides eligible lowto-moderate income members with up to $12,000 in weatherization improvements to their home at no cost. Participating members averaged $3,647 in lifecycle energy savings per home.
Manufactured Homes
We have partnered with ODEC to provide a free home audit for eligible members with manufactured homes. The program finds personalized recommendations to improve energy use in the home and installs them at no cost.
> 22 CHOP-A-WATT MEMBERS, 84 MEASURES INSTALLED
> 14 MEMBERS ENROLLED IN MANUFACTURED HOMES PROGRAM
> 3,581 MEMBERS ENROLLED IN BEAT THE PEAK PROGRAM
> 33 LOAD CONTROL RIDERS
Beat the Peak
Our voluntary Beat the Peak program alerts members via email to reduce their electricity use during “peak” energy times when the Cooperative is purchasing wholesale power at the highest prices (usually due to extreme temperatures). Reductions in wholesale power costs are passed through directly to the members in our power cost adjustment (PCA).
Load Reduction
33 members participated in our Load Control Riders program, saving money by voluntarily curtailing their load during peak periods in the summer. There are separate requirements for commercial and irrigation rates.
HOW YOUR COOPERATIVE DOLLAR WAS SPENT
CONCERN FOR COMMUNITY
Choptank Electric models Concern for Community, one of the seven Cooperative Principles, through our public outreach efforts and local support. The quality of life for our members and the community has always been at the center of what we do.
Choptank Electric Cooperative adopted Operation Round Up® as our community assistance program in 2004. Operated as the non-profit Choptank Electric Trust, Inc., this is a simple and rewarding way to enable members to contribute funds to local charities, individuals and service organizations by rounding up their monthly electric bills to the nearest dollar. In 2025, 92% of Choptank Electric Cooperative members were enrolled in Operation Round Up®.
The Choptank Electric Trust awarded $342,823 to support our community with food, clothing, shelter, equipment, medical and educational needs in 2025. The Choptank Trust plays a vital role in our community. To learn more about the Trust or to apply for a grant, visit choptankelectric.coop/operation-round-trust-fund.
EDUCATION, TRAINING & INFORMATION
We know the value of education and training for our employees, community members and youth. Another one of the seven Cooperative Principles we follow is Education, Training & Information.
Choptank Electric participated in many activities to connect with our future leaders in 2025. Throughout these events and tours, our employees taught electric and powerline safety, careers in the utility and broadband industries, how power gets to their homes and provided hands-on interactions and demonstrations.
We awarded $37,000 in scholarships to help local students seeking higher education and took five high school students to Washington, D.C. on Youth Tour to learn about electric
co-ops and meet with their U.S. Representatives and Senators. Choptank continued its partnership with Junior Achievement of the Eastern Shore’s Center through the utility storefront and the Inspire Career Fair. Our Powerline Worker PreApprenticeship Program at Wor-Wic Community College graduated two more cohorts in 2025 and we hosted the annual Girl Power event at our facility in Salisbury for female students interested in the utility industry.
