Northern States Power Company - Minnesota (Xcel Energy) Rate Selection Guide
Northern States Power Company, operating as Xcel Energy in Minnesota, is a regulated investor-owned electric and gas utility serving over 1.5 million electric customers. For C&I customers, Xcel offers a robust data-access stack including the InfoWise 15-minute interval program, Green Button Connect My Data, EDI trading-partner billing, and an ENERGY STAR Portfolio Manager benchmarking portal.
Northern States Power Company - Minnesota (Xcel Energy) Rate Schedule Comparison
| Schedule | Type | Rate | Best For |
|---|---|---|---|
| Small General Service | electric | Basic $10/mo + seasonal energy ~$0.078-0.093/kWh (no demand charge) | Small commercial sites under 25 kW demand |
| General Service (Demand-Metered) | electric | Basic $25.64/mo + demand ~$10.49-14.79/kW seasonal + energy ~the published tariff | Most C&I facilities with metered demand; voltage discounts reward primary/transmission service |
| General Time of Day Service | electric | Demand + split on-peak/off-peak energy ($0.049 / $0.023) | Large or load-shiftable customers; mandatory over 1,000 kW |
| Commercial Firm Gas | gas | Basic $25-50/mo + distribution ~$0.117/therm + Cost of Gas | Commercial gas users under 500 therms/day peak |
| Commercial Demand-Billed Gas | gas | Basic $150/mo + commodity $0.045/therm + demand $0.809/therm | Larger industrial gas loads with steady demand |
Market Overview
Xcel Energy (NSP-Minnesota) is a regulated investor-owned monopoly under the Minnesota PUC. No competitive retail supplier choice exists; service is bundled. Minnesota Open Data Access Standards require sharing aggregated/anonymized data with qualifying third parties.
Need to pull your actual usage data to compare rates? See the Northern States Power Company - Minnesota (Xcel Energy) Data Access Guide →
Current Rate Schedules
Xcel Energy (Northern States Power - Minnesota) serves C&I customers under MPUC-regulated electric tariffs. Demand-metered General Service is the workhorse C&I schedule, with seasonal energy charges (higher June-September), monthly billing demand based on the maximum 15-minute average kW, and voltage discounts at primary, transmission-transformed, and transmission levels. A separate Small General Service schedule serves customers under 25 kW. Bills also include monthly Fuel Cost Charge, Resource Adjustment (CIP/RDF/TCR/SEP/RES/MCR), affordability surcharge, decoupling, and city fees. Representative figures below are drawn from Xcel's published MN C&I rate card to illustrate structure; current billed amounts reflect 2025 interim rate increases pending the 2025 rate case decision.
| Schedule | Type | Applicability | Structure | Rate |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Small General Service | electric | Any non-residential customer, single- or three-phase, served through one meter where maximum demand is less than 25 kW. | Monthly basic service charge plus seasonal per-kWh energy charge (no demand charge). Optional time-of-day variant available. | Basic service charge $10/mo; energy the published tariff June-Sep, the published tariff Oct-May (2019 card)+ None |
| General Service (Demand-Metered) | electric | Any non-residential customer at secondary, primary, transmission-transformed, or transmission voltage; demand-metered. Primary C&I schedule. | Basic service charge + seasonal demand charge per billing kW (max 15-min avg) + per-kWh energy charge, with an energy charge credit on kWh above 400 hours x billing kW. Voltage discounts reduce demand and energy charges at higher voltages. Power-factor and 11-month demand ratchet adjustments apply. | Basic charge $25.64/mo; secondary energy the published tariff; energy credit the published tariff (2019 card)+ Secondary $14.79/kW June-Sep, $10.49/kW Oct-May; reduced by voltage discounts ($0.80-$2.35/kW) at primary/transmission (2019 card) |
| General Time of Day Service | electric | Demand-metered C&I customers; mandatory for very large customers over 1,000 kW demand. | Basic service charge + on-peak demand charge per kW + off-peak excess demand charge + separate on-peak/off-peak per-kWh energy charges. On-peak 9am-9pm weekdays. Voltage discounts and demand adjustments apply. | On-peak energy the published tariff, off-peak the published tariff; basic charge $29.64/mo (2019 card)+ On-peak $14.79/kW June-Sep, $10.49/kW Oct-May; off-peak excess $2.35/kW (2019 card) |
| Peak-Controlled / Interruptible Options | electric | C&I customers willing to interrupt a portion of load on request (controlled A/C, energy-controlled service, limited off-peak service). | Discounted energy/demand pricing or seasonal bill credits in exchange for curtailment. Minimum one-year commitment. | Controlled A/C credit ~$5 per ton per summer billing month (2019 card)+ Varies by option |
| Commercial Firm Gas Service | gas | Firm commercial/industrial gas customers with peak daily demand under 500 therms. | Basic service charge (tiered small/large by annual use) + per-therm distribution charge + Cost of Gas Charge (seasonal, higher Nov-Apr) + affordability surcharge. | Basic $25 (small <6,000 therms/yr) or $50 (large); distribution ~$0.1167/therm (2019 card)+ None (firm); see demand-billed schedule for demand charges |
| Commercial Demand-Billed / Interruptible Gas | gas | Firm C&I gas customers (demand-billed) and interruptible/transportation customers agreeing to curtailment. | Higher basic service charge + distribution commodity charge per therm + distribution demand charge per therm of billing demand; interruptible tiers by daily volume. Transportation service available for self-supplied gas. | Demand-billed basic $150/mo; commodity $0.044978/therm (2019 card)+ Distribution demand charge $0.809470/therm of billing demand (2019 card) |
Rate Recommendations by Use Case
Reduce demand charges at a C&I facility
Enroll in InfoWise to pull 15-minute interval data and identify peak demand intervals driving high kW charges.
Demand charges are a major C&I cost component; granular data reveals shaveable peaks.
- Choose the real-time InfoWise tier for active demand management
- Correlate peaks with operational schedules
- Consider load shifting or battery storage
Benchmark a multi-building portfolio
Use the Xcel Benchmarking Portal to auto-upload whole-building data into ENERGY STAR Portfolio Manager.
Portfolio benchmarking identifies underperformers and satisfies Minnesota Large Building Benchmarking requirements.
- Match ESPM email to the Benchmarking Portal account
- Map each Xcel meter to ESPM meters
- Set monthly automated import
Automate billing across many accounts
Set up EDI 810/820 trading-partner exchange to automate invoice intake and payment processing.
Reduces manual entry and reconciliation effort for multi-site operators.
- Engage the Business Solutions Center early
- Plan 4-6 weeks for testing
- Generate 997 acknowledgements
Share data with energy software
Use Green Button Connect My Data to authorize energy-management apps via OAuth without sharing credentials.
Standards-based ESPI access enables portable analytics across vendors.
- Confirm vendor is a registered Green Button provider
- Review the permission scope before authorizing
- Revoke via My Account when finished
Historical Rate Trends
Xcel filed its 2025 Minnesota electric rate case (Docket E002/GR-24-320) on November 1, 2024, requesting a multi-year increase. The MPUC approved interim rates effective January 1, 2025, and later reduced the interim level. A final Commission decision is expected in summer 2026, after which final rates (and any true-up) will apply across customer classes including C&I.
November 1, 2024
Xcel files 2025 electric rate case requesting ~$353.3M (~9.6%) in 2025 and an additional ~$137.5M (~3.6%) in 2026 across all classes.
~9.6% requested 2025 (system average)January 1, 2025
MPUC approved interim electric rates (~$192M / ~5.7% average residential) effective Jan 1, 2025, pending final decision; applied across classes. Interim level later reduced by the PUC.
~5.7% average (residential reference; class-specific varies)Overall trend: increasing
Next expected change: Final 2025 rate case decision expected summer 2026 (MPUC Docket E002/GR-24-320); 2026 step increase also requested. Will reset C&I demand and energy charges.
Cost Optimization Strategies
Because Xcel MN C&I bills are demand-driven and strongly seasonal, the largest savings come from shaving summer peak kW, improving power factor, and selecting the right voltage and schedule.
Summer peak demand management
For: General Service (Demand-Metered), Time of Day
Shift or curtail load during June-September when demand charges peak (~$14.79/kW vs ~$10.49/kW winter) to cut the demand component of the bill.
Power factor correction
For: General Service (Demand-Metered), Time of Day
Maintain power factor at or above 90% to avoid the upward billing-demand adjustment Xcel applies to low-PF customers.
Voltage-level optimization
For: General Service, Time of Day
Where feasible, take service at primary or transmission voltage to capture per-kW and per-kWh voltage discounts (up to ~$2.35/kW and ~the published tariff).
Time-of-day load shifting
For: General Time of Day Service
Move flexible load to off-peak hours (outside 9am-9pm weekdays) to benefit from lower off-peak energy (~the published tariff vs ~the published tariff on-peak).
Interruptible / peak-controlled enrollment
For: Peak-controlled / Interruptible options
Enroll curtailable load in interruptible or controlled service for discounted pricing or seasonal credits.
To implement these strategies, you need your 15-minute interval data. Learn how to download Northern States Power Company - Minnesota (Xcel Energy) interval data →
Frequently Asked Questions
Can my business get 15-minute interval data from Xcel Energy in Minnesota?▾
Yes. C&I customers can enroll in the InfoWise (Empower Intelligence) program for 15-minute interval data with monthly, daily, or real-time refresh tiers, delivered via portal, API, or SFTP. Contact the Business Solutions Center at 800-481-4700.
Does Xcel Energy support Green Button for third-party data sharing?▾
Yes. Xcel Energy supports Green Button Connect My Data, which uses OAuth 2.0 and the NAESB REQ.21 ESPI standard to let customers authorize approved third-party applications to access interval and billing data.
Does Xcel Energy offer EDI for commercial billing?▾
Yes. Xcel Energy supports ANSI X12 004010 EDI transactions including 810 (invoice), 820 (remittance), 814, and 867. Enrollment runs through the Business Solutions Center and typically takes 4-6 weeks including testing.
How much billing history is available online?▾
Up to 24 months of consumption and billing data is available through the My Account portal, downloadable as PDF charts or CSV-compatible usage tables.
How do C&I customers benchmark buildings with Xcel?▾
Xcel's Benchmarking Portal integrates with ENERGY STAR Portfolio Manager to auto-upload whole-building electricity and gas consumption, supporting Minnesota's Large Building Benchmarking Program.
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