Randy J. Cornelius was hired as General Manager. Cornelius came up through the ranks from journeyman lineman, later earning his degree in electrical engineering from Oregon State University. Before coming to OPALCO, he was the Electric Utility Director for the city of Sitka, Alaska.
Randy brought the Co-op into the 21st century with unparalleled system reliability, further developed OPALCO’s fiber communication system to connect the island community to the larger world, and negotiated a twenty-year contract with BPA to buffer the Co-op from escalating power costs into the future.