Black Hills Power Rate Selection Guide
Black Hills Power, Inc. (d/b/a Black Hills Energy / South Dakota Electric) is a regulated investor-owned electric utility serving about 77,500 customers around Rapid City, South Dakota. It offers robust online billing data with Excel/PDF export and up to two years of history, AMI-based interval data via portal and manual request, but no Green Button, API, or electric EDI.
Black Hills Power Rate Schedule Comparison
| Schedule | Type | Rate | Best For |
|---|---|---|---|
| General Service | Commercial | Service charge + demand + energy (see SD rate book) | General commercial loads |
| General Service - Total Electric | Commercial | Service charge + demand + energy (see SD rate book) | All-electric commercial with heating |
| General Service - Large (GLC) | Industrial | $105 service + $1,750/125 kVA + $10.50/kVA; energy $0.038/$0.03623/$0.03199 per kWh (tiered, eff. 1/1/2019) | Large power customers (125+ kVA) |
| Industrial Contract Service | Industrial | Negotiated contract (see SD rate book) | Very large industrial loads |
Market Overview
South Dakota is a fully regulated electricity market with no retail electric choice. Black Hills Power provides bundled service under tariffs filed with the South Dakota PUC. C&I customers take service on published rate schedules and cannot select a competitive supplier. A general rate increase application (Docket EL26-003) is pending as of early 2026.
Need to pull your actual usage data to compare rates? See the Black Hills Power Data Access Guide →
Current Rate Schedules
Black Hills Power's South Dakota electric rates are published in the SD PUC rate book and on the utility's site. The C&I schedules include General Service, General Service - Total Electric, and General Service - Large (rate class for large power customers with billing capacity of 125+ kVA), plus an Industrial Contract Service. Verified figures below are drawn from the filed General Service - Large (GLC) tariff sheet (effective Jan 1, 2019): $105.00/service-location service charge; $1,750.00 capacity charge for the first 125 kVA plus $10.50/kVA above; and tiered energy at $0.03800/kWh (first 50,000 kWh), $0.03623/kWh (next 450,000 kWh), and $0.03199/kWh thereafter. A general rate increase (Docket EL26-003) was filed Feb 19, 2026 and is pending, so current charges may change; confirm in the live rate book.
Effective: January 1, 2019 · Full Tariff Book →
| Schedule | Type | Applicability | Structure | Rate |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| General Service | commercial | Commercial customers using electric service supplied at one point of delivery for which no specific schedule is provided. | Service charge plus demand and energy charges. See SD PUC electric rate book. | — |
| General Service - Total Electric | commercial | Commercial customers where electricity is the sole energy source and connected space-heating load is at least 30% of total connected load. | Service charge plus demand and energy charges. See SD PUC electric rate book. | — |
| General Service - Large (GLC) | industrial | Large power customers taking their entire requirements at one point of delivery; must agree to a billing capacity of 125+ kVA. Three-year initial contract term. | Verified (eff. 1/1/2019): Service charge $105.00 per service location; Capacity charge $1,750.00 for first 125 kVA + $10.50 per additional kVA; Energy $0.03800/kWh first 50,000 kWh, $0.03623/kWh next 450,000 kWh, $0.03199/kWh additional. Billing capacity ratchet at 80% of prior 11-month peak. | — |
| Industrial Contract Service | industrial | Large industrial customers served under negotiated contract terms. | Contract-based demand and energy charges. See SD PUC electric rate book. | — |
| Demand Service | commercial | Customers with a single meter and minimum usage of 1,000 kWh/month; demand-metered. | Service charge plus demand and energy charges. See SD PUC electric rate book. | — |
Rate Recommendations by Use Case
Large power facility (125+ kVA)
Take General Service - Large and actively manage peak kVA and power factor to control the capacity charge and the 11-month demand ratchet.
Capacity charges ($1,750 per 125 kVA + $10.50/kVA) and the 80% ratchet dominate large bills; a single peak sets a floor for 11 months, so peak and power-factor control yield the biggest savings.
- Install capacitor banks to raise power factor
- Avoid coincident equipment startups that spike 15-minute kVA
- Request 15-minute interval data to find ratchet-setting events
- Confirm current charges given pending Docket EL26-003
General commercial business
Use General Service (or General Service - Total Electric if all-electric with significant heating) and watch demand.
Standard commercial schedules fit moderate loads; all-electric sites with >=30% heating load may qualify for the Total Electric class.
- Confirm class eligibility based on heating load
- Use the usage dashboard to spot demand peaks
- Export billing data to Excel for budgeting
Energy/sustainability team needing data
Export billing data to Excel/PDF for up to 24 months, and file a manual request (or signed third-party authorization) for 15-minute interval data.
There is no Green Button or API, but Black Hills offers solid Excel/PDF billing export plus CSV interval data on request, which supports most analytics workflows.
- Use 'Export Billing Data' in My Account
- Submit a signed Release of Information for third-party access
- Allow 5-10 business days for 15-minute interval data
Very large industrial load
Evaluate Industrial Contract Service for negotiated terms versus standard General Service - Large.
Negotiated contract terms can better fit very large, steady industrial loads than the standard large schedule.
- Model both schedules against your load profile
- Negotiate contract term and capacity provisions
- Factor in the pending EL26-003 rate increase
Client advocate / energy assistance agency
Enroll in the Energy Help portal to access consumption and bill history for represented low-income customers.
Energy Help gives authorized advocates direct portal access to balances, disconnect notices, and payment arrangements without per-request paperwork.
- Complete the Energy Help Enrollment Form
- Protect customer data per program terms
- Use only for authorized customers
Historical Rate Trends
Black Hills Power adjusts rates through general rate cases filed with the South Dakota PUC plus a Cost Adjustment rider. The current General Service - Large tariff sheet is effective January 1, 2019, and a new general rate increase application (Docket EL26-003) was filed February 19, 2026.
February 19, 2026
Black Hills Power filed an Application for Authority to Increase Rates for its South Dakota utility service (Docket EL26-003); pending before the PUC.
pendingJanuary 1, 2019
Current General Service - Large (GLC) and related rate sheets took effect (Docket EL18-029).
n/aOverall trend: Rising. After a stable period on the 2019 rate book, Black Hills filed a general rate increase in early 2026 that remains pending before the PUC.
Next expected change: Pending outcome of Docket EL26-003 (filed Feb 19, 2026); new rates expected once approved by the SD PUC.
Cost Optimization Strategies
Because large Black Hills Power customers are billed on a kVA capacity charge with a demand ratchet and a power-factor-based billing capacity, the highest-leverage moves are managing peak demand, correcting power factor, and avoiding ratchet-setting peaks. Tiered energy pricing also rewards higher-volume, steady consumption.
Peak demand and ratchet management
For: General Service - Large and demand-metered C&I
Limit the 15-minute peak that sets billing capacity; because 80% of the highest prior-11-month capacity persists as a floor, avoiding a single large spike protects the whole year.
Power factor correction
For: General Service - Large (kVA-billed) customers
Billing capacity on GS-Large is computed from kVA (kWh divided by power factor). Adding capacitors to raise power factor lowers billed kVA without cutting real energy use.
Tiered energy optimization
For: Large-volume industrial customers
Energy is tiered ($0.038/$0.03623/$0.03199 per kWh); high-volume customers benefit from the lower marginal tiers, so consolidating eligible load can reduce blended cost.
Usage monitoring and efficiency
For: All C&I customers
Use the My Account usage dashboard and efficiency programs to track peak-usage periods and target reductions; request 15-minute interval data for detailed analysis.
To implement these strategies, you need your 15-minute interval data. Learn how to download Black Hills Power interval data →
Frequently Asked Questions
Can a business export its Black Hills Power billing data?▾
Yes. In the My Account portal, open Billing then History, scroll to 'Export Billing Data', choose a start and end month, and download up to 24 months of data in Excel (.xlsx) or PDF at no charge. There is no Green Button or CSV self-service interval export.
How do I get 15-minute interval data?▾
Detailed 15-minute interval data is not self-service. Contact customer service (888-890-5554 / custserv@blackhillscorp.com) with your account number and date range; data is delivered in CSV/Excel, typically within 5-10 business days. Up to 13 months of interval history is retained in the MDMS.
What are the General Service - Large rates?▾
Per the filed GLC tariff sheet (effective Jan 1, 2019): a $105.00 service charge per service location; a capacity charge of $1,750.00 for the first 125 kVA plus $10.50 per additional kVA; and tiered energy at $0.03800/kWh (first 50,000), $0.03623/kWh (next 450,000), and $0.03199/kWh thereafter, with a Cost Adjustment rider. A general rate increase (Docket EL26-003, filed Feb 2026) is pending, so confirm current charges.
Can a C&I customer choose a competitive electric supplier?▾
No. South Dakota is a regulated, vertically-integrated market with no retail electric choice. Black Hills Power provides bundled service on tariffs filed with the SD PUC; C&I customers take service on published rate schedules.
How does a consultant access a customer's data?▾
Through a signed Customer Authorization to Release Information form (framework set in SD PUC Docket EL15-013). Submit it by email (custserv@blackhillscorp.com), fax (800-540-2486), or mail. Authorized billing exports arrive in about 3-5 business days; interval data takes 5-10. There is no API or portal delegation.
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