Black Hills Power, Inc. electricity rates
Black Hills Power, Inc. charges an average of 14.37 cents per kilowatt-hour to residential customers, and the average household on its system paid $110 a month using 767 kilowatt-hours, according to its 2024 filing with the U.S. Energy Information Administration.
Investor-owned utility WACM South Dakota
Where Black Hills Power, Inc. sits
It serves 60,951 residential customers in South Dakota. Its 14.37¢ per kilowatt-hour sits 8.6% below the South Dakota average of 15.73¢.
Consumption here is below the national norm at 767 kilowatt-hours a month against 871, which softens the effect of the rate on the final bill.
A shareholder-owned company whose rates are set by the state regulator, including an approved return on the capital it has invested. That matters because a bill is not only the cost of generating electricity: it also carries the cost of the network, and who owns that network changes how it is paid for.
| Rate | Monthly bill | Monthly kWh | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Black Hills Power, Inc. | 14.37¢ | $110 | 767 |
| South Dakota average | 15.73¢ | $138 | 981 |
| United States average | 18.44¢ | $155 | 871 |
Utility figures: U.S. Energy Information Administration, Form EIA-861 annual electric power industry report, 2024. State and national figures: Electric Power Monthly, May 2026. Methodology
Where Black Hills Power, Inc. delivers
Its service territory covers 6 South Dakota counties, either wholly or in part. Utility boundaries follow historic franchise agreements rather than county lines, so a county appearing here does not mean every address in it is served by Black Hills Power, Inc..
- Butte
- Custer
- Fall River
- Lawrence
- Meade
- Pennington
How often the power goes out
In 2024 the average Black Hills Power, Inc. customer went 57 minutes without electricity across 0.87 interruptions. The median across the 941 utilities that report this is 185 minutes.
That is markedly better than typical. Short outage durations usually mean an underground or heavily automated network, and they are expensive to achieve, which is part of why reliable systems often carry higher delivery charges.
Rooftop solar on this system
215 residential customers had net-metered solar in 2024, totalling 1.35 megawatts. That works out to 3.5 installations per thousand customers, against a median of 8 across the utilities reporting it.
Adoption is below the national median. A low retail rate reduces what solar displaces, and export compensation set at avoided cost rather than the retail rate reduces it further. What exports are actually worth.
Other South Dakota utilities
| Utility | Rate | Bill | Customers |
|---|---|---|---|
| Northern States Power Co - Minnesota | 13.87¢ | $103 | 92,204 |
| NorthWestern Energy | 12.56¢ | $113 | 51,467 |
| Sioux Valley SW Elec Coop | 12.94¢ | $160 | 22,213 |
| Southeastern Electric Coop Inc | 12.41¢ | $140 | 20,160 |
| West River Electric Assn Inc | 14.25¢ | $128 | 18,423 |
Black Hills Power, Inc. rates: common questions
How much does Black Hills Power, Inc. charge per kilowatt-hour?
An average of 14.37 cents per kilowatt-hour across its residential customers in 2024. That is -8.6% against the South Dakota average of 15.73¢ and -22.1% against the national average of 18.44¢. It is an all-in average across every residential rate schedule the utility offers, not a specific tariff.
What is the average Black Hills Power, Inc. bill?
$110 a month, based on total residential revenue divided by residential customers over the 2024 survey year, at an average of 767 kWh a month. The national average bill is $155 at 871 kWh.
Who owns Black Hills Power, Inc.?
It is classified by the EIA as a investor-owned utility. A shareholder-owned company whose rates are set by the state regulator, including an approved return on the capital it has invested.
Is Black Hills Power, Inc. expensive compared with other South Dakota utilities?
It ranks #4 of the 20 South Dakota utilities covered here, counting from the most expensive. Nationally it ranks #508 of 1369.