Black Hills Colorado Electric, LLC
Investor Owned electric utility · Colorado · #211 of 3,199 U.S. utilities by customers · EIA utility #56146
Black Hills Colorado Electric, LLC is a investor owned electric utility serving 111,502 customers in Colorado. In 2025 it sold 1,754 gigawatt-hours of electricity for $258.59M in revenue, an average realized rate of 14.74¢ per kWh across all customer classes and 18.71¢ per kWh for residential customers. Its reported service territory covers 7 counties. EIA records its activities as: generation, transmission, buying transmission, distribution, wholesale marketing.
Customers, sales and rates by customer class (2025)
| Class | Customers | Sales (GWh) | Revenue | Avg realized rate | Share of sales |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Residential | 97,888 | 595 | $111.32M | 18.71¢ | |
| Commercial | 13,554 | 821 | $110.06M | 13.40¢ | |
| Industrial | 60 | 338 | $37.21M | 11.01¢ | |
| Total | 111,502 | 1,754 | $258.59M | 14.74¢ |
Average realized rate = revenue divided by sales as reported on EIA Form 861. It blends fixed charges, demand charges and riders into one per-kWh figure; it is not the utility's tariff rate. Estimated residential bill assumes the average residential customer's actual 2025 usage (506 kWh/month).
Five-year trend
| Year | Customers | Sales (GWh) | Revenue | Residential rate |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 99,535 | 1,921 | $273.58M | 17.99¢ |
| 2022 | 100,423 | 1,894 | $293.12M | 19.39¢ |
| 2023 | 101,100 | 1,799 | $248.38M | 17.42¢ |
| 2024 | 101,718 | 1,821 | $242.40M | 17.05¢ |
| 2025 | 111,502 | 1,754 | $258.59M | 18.71¢ |
Reliability (2025)
Average outage time (SAIDI): 95 minutes per customer per year
Average outages (SAIFI): 0.90 per customer
Average restoration time (CAIDI): 105 minutes
As reported for Colorado under the IEEE standard, with major event days included where the standard reports them. Lower is better; see the reliability rankings.
Energy supply (2025)
Net generation: 742 GWh
Wholesale power purchased: 1,596 GWh
Winter peak demand: 299 MW
Energy losses: 6.2% of energy handled
Meters & rooftop solar (2025)
Smart (AMI) meters: 100.0% of 111,502 meters
Customer-sited generation (net metering): 10,790 installations, 116.1 MW of capacity
Counties served
Crowley, COCuster, COEl Paso, COFremont, COOtero, COPueblo, COTeller, CO
Other large utilities in Colorado
- Public Service Co of Colorado - 1,605,246 customers, residential 15.90¢
- City of Colorado Springs - (CO) - 264,106 customers, residential 15.43¢
- CORE Electric Cooperative - 182,993 customers, residential 15.62¢
- United Power, Inc - 115,479 customers, residential 16.50¢
- City of Fort Collins - (CO) - 80,929 customers, residential 14.34¢
- Mountain View Elec Assn, Inc - 65,946 customers, residential 15.65¢
- Holy Cross Electric Assn, Inc - 61,834 customers, residential 12.45¢
- Poudre Valley REA, Inc - 56,750 customers, residential 12.47¢
All Colorado utilities and rates
Source: U.S. Energy Information Administration, Form EIA-861 2025 (filed by the utility; figures as published). Utility #56146 in the EIA frame.