Central Virginia Electric Cooperative (CVEC) Rate Selection Guide
Central Virginia Electric Cooperative (CVEC) is a member-owned cooperative serving roughly 39,573 accounts across 14 Central Virginia counties. Its NISC SmartHub-based portal exposes daily/monthly usage and 15-minute AMI interval data with multi-year history, but CVEC has no Green Button certification, EDI program, or public API — third-party access runs through manual customer authorization. C&I members get extras like summary billing and power quality monitoring.
Market Overview
Member-owned Virginia cooperative providing bundled service across 14 counties; no practical retail supplier choice for members. Net metering is supported with production tracking in the usage portal.
Need to pull your actual usage data to compare rates? See the Central Virginia Electric Cooperative (CVEC) Data Access Guide →
Current Rate Schedules
Central Virginia Electric Cooperative (CVEC) serves about 38,000 meters across 14 central Virginia counties, with rates regulated by the Virginia State Corporation Commission. Nonresidential service is classed by load: Schedule B General Service up to 50 kVA, Schedule LP Large Power above 50 kVA on three-phase lines, and Schedule I Commercial & Industrial for contracted peaks of 1,500 kW or more, plus a Large Power Market Service (LPM) option. A monthly Power Cost Adjustment passes wholesale costs through on all schedules. CVEC's 2024 streamlined rate case raised revenues about 3.98% overall (4.5% on General Service, 3.25% on Large Power, 3.5% on C&I). Per-kWh and per-kW figures are published in the schedule PDFs — see tariff for current rates.
Effective: April 5, 2024 · Full Tariff Book →
| Schedule | Type | Applicability | Structure | Rate |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Schedule B — General Service | commercial | All members not qualifying for residential service whose load does not exceed 50 kVA on more than one occasion in 12 consecutive months. | Monthly customer charge plus energy charges on all kWh and the Power Cost Adjustment; no demand charge below the 50 kVA threshold. See the Schedule B PDF for current rates. | — |
| Schedule LP — Large Power Service | commercial | Members on or near CVEC's three-phase lines whose load exceeds 50 kVA on more than one occasion in 12 consecutive months. | Customer charge, per-kW demand charge on monthly billing demand, energy charges, and Power Cost Adjustment. The 2024 rate case raised this class about 3.25%. See the Schedule LP PDF for current rates. | —+ Per-kW on billing demand — see tariff |
| Schedule I — Commercial & Industrial Service | industrial | Members contracting for a peak demand of 1,500 kW or more — manufacturing, large institutional, and process loads. | Contract demand service with customer charge, demand charges, energy charges, and Power Cost Adjustment; contract terms set minimum billing demand. See the Schedule I PDF and contact CVEC's C&I team for current rates. | —+ Contract demand basis — see tariff |
| Schedule LPM — Large Power Market Service | industrial | Large power members electing market-indexed supply pricing. | Market-based energy pricing with delivery charges per the schedule; suited to sophisticated loads that can manage wholesale price exposure. See tariff for current terms. | — |
Rate Recommendations by Use Case
Manufacturing or process facility with 1,500+ kW contract demand
Large industrial members take Schedule I contract demand service, with CVEC's C&I team providing dedicated account support and rate analysis.
Contract demand terms set a billing floor, so right-sizing the contracted kW matters as much as managing actual peaks. Loads with energy-market sophistication should evaluate LPM's market-indexed pricing against fixed Schedule I rates.
- Request CVEC's free rate analysis if operations have expanded or contracted — they actively re-class members.
- Negotiate contract demand to reflect realistic peaks, not nameplate capacity.
- Model LPM market pricing only if you can tolerate wholesale volatility or hedge it.
Mid-size commercial above 50 kVA — grocery, lumber, agribusiness
Loads exceeding 50 kVA move to Schedule LP, where a demand charge appears and peak management becomes the primary lever.
The LP demand charge bills monthly peak kW on top of energy and the Power Cost Adjustment. Refrigeration, drying, and HVAC coincidence drives peaks in CVEC's rural commercial base.
- Stagger compressor and motor starts to avoid setting unnecessary peaks.
- Verify three-phase service requirements early — LP availability depends on proximity to three-phase lines.
- Track the Power Cost Adjustment line — it moves monthly with wholesale costs.
Small business or rural commercial under 50 kVA
Wineries, shops, and offices below 50 kVA stay on Schedule B with no demand charge — simple energy-based billing.
Exceeding 50 kVA more than once in 12 months forces a move to Schedule LP and introduces demand charges. Businesses near the threshold should manage load growth deliberately and use efficiency to stay under it where economic.
- Know your kVA history — one-time spikes are tolerated, repeated ones trigger reclassification.
- Use CVEC's SmartHub portal to monitor monthly usage trends.
- The 2024 rate case raised this class 4.5%, so efficiency paybacks improved accordingly.
Cost Optimization Strategies
CVEC bills layer SCC-regulated base rates with a monthly Power Cost Adjustment, and the 2024 streamlined rate case raised most classes 3.25-4.5%. Optimization revolves around demand management on LP and Schedule I accounts, correct rate classification at the 50 kVA and 1,500 kW thresholds, and CVEC's free rate analysis service.
Free CVEC rate analysis
For: All commercial and industrial members
CVEC's C&I team offers rate analyses for members whose operations have changed. An annual review catches misclassification at the 50 kVA and 1,500 kW breakpoints — the cheapest savings available.
Demand peak management
For: Schedule LP and Schedule I members
Schedule LP and I bill per-kW demand charges on monthly peaks (contract minimums on Schedule I). Sequence motor starts, stage HVAC, and shift batch loads to flatten the peak that sets the demand line.
Contract demand right-sizing
For: Schedule I contract members
Schedule I members pay on contracted demand of 1,500 kW or more. Review actual 12-month peaks against the contract annually and renegotiate when operations shrink — over-contracted kW is pure waste.
Power Cost Adjustment tracking
For: All members; material for high-volume accounts
The PCA passes CVEC's wholesale power costs through monthly on every schedule. Trend it separately from base rates for budgeting, and time discretionary heavy usage with PCA trends where flexible.
Efficiency and load factor improvement
For: All commercial and industrial members
After the 2024 increases, every avoided kWh returns more. Lighting, HVAC, refrigeration, and compressed-air upgrades cut energy charges while flattening the peaks that drive LP/I demand billing.
To implement these strategies, you need your 15-minute interval data. Learn how to download Central Virginia Electric Cooperative (CVEC) interval data →
Frequently Asked Questions
How do commercial members access billing and usage data from CVEC?▾
Register at the CVEC Account Portal (https://pay.mycvec.com/onlineportal/) using your account number without dashes. The portal shows itemized current and previous bills, payment history, and daily/monthly usage with weather comparison. C&I customers can also enroll in free summary billing to consolidate multiple meters onto one bill.
Does CVEC provide 15-minute interval data?▾
Yes — CVEC's AMI meters and NISC SmartHub platform store 15-minute interval data with multiple years of history. The standard portal exports hourly CSV; full 15-minute granularity has been accessed via the undocumented SmartHub API (community tools like tedpearson/electric-usage-downloader). Confirm current export options with Member Services at 800-367-2832.
Is CVEC Green Button certified?▾
No. CVEC does not appear in the Green Button Alliance directory and shows no Green Button option in its portal — even though the NISC SmartHub platform technically supports Green Button Connect My Data. Ask CVEC directly about implementation plans.
How can an energy consultant or aggregator access a CVEC member's data?▾
There is no automated third-party program. Obtain written customer authorization, then submit it to Member Services (800-367-2832 Option 0 or ms@mycvec.com) specifying the data types and update frequency needed. CVEC provides data via email, mail, or portal access under a custom data-sharing arrangement, possibly with annual renewal.
Does CVEC support EDI for billing or usage data?▾
No. CVEC publishes no EDI implementation guides, transaction set support (814/867/820), or trading partner enrollment — unlike larger Virginia utilities such as Dominion Energy or AEP. Its CIS runs on the SEDC billing system. EDI inquiries go to ms@mycvec.com.
What extra data tools does CVEC offer C&I facilities?▾
Two stand out: free summary billing that consolidates multiple meters into one bill, and a power quality monitoring service where CVEC installs equipment at your service entrance and produces custom reports on voltage, current, power, harmonic distortion, and transients. Contact the C&I team via https://www.mycvec.com/member-services/commercial-industrial/.
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