IOU · Colorado · EIA 56146
Black Hills Colorado Electric, LLC
IOU · Colorado · 101K customers. According to the U.S. Energy Information Administration's EIA Form 861, reliability for 2023 shows SAIDI 106 minutes/customer.
Reliability verdict
Black Hills Colorado Electric, LLC shows above-average chronic reliability in 2023: 87 minutes SAIDI excluding major events across 101K customers.
- 106 min
- SAIDI 2023
- 1.55
- SAIFI 2023
- 87 min
- SAIDI ex-MED
- 101K
- Customers
Chronic reliability judged on SAIDI excluding major event days when reported (IEEE 1366). Source: EIA Form 861 · August 2026.
Signature read: mid-cohort SAIDI between the 96 and 258 minute tercile cuts.
What mid-pack Black Hills Colorado Electric, LLC filings show
Black Hills Colorado Electric, LLC is an investor-owned utility operating in Colorado under EIA identifier 56146. It reports service to approximately 101,100 customer accounts and generated about $0.25 billion in annual electric revenue, with a service footprint spanning 72 ZIP codes. Investor ownership puts this utility under the regulatory authority of the state public utility commission, which reviews its rate requests and reliability record.
In 2023, the average Black Hills Colorado Electric, LLC customer experienced 105.8 minutes of power interruptions, a measure known as SAIDI, or System Average Interruption Duration Index. That keeps this utility below the typical 120–180 minute national benchmark, consistent with a well-hardened distribution system and fast restoration crews. Over the same period, SAIFI (outage events per customer) was 1.55, putting the typical customer at roughly 2 distinct interruptions that year. Once major event days (hurricanes, ice storms) are excluded, SAIDI comes down to 87.4 minutes, and the spread against the headline 105.8 indicates how much weather, versus routine infrastructure, drove the outage total.
The EIA dataset includes 4 years of continuous reporting (2020–2023) for Black Hills Colorado Electric, LLC, which lets you see whether reliability is trending up or down rather than judging from a single snapshot. SAIDI has increased from 74.1 to 105.8 minutes, which may reflect either worsening weather exposure or delayed grid modernization.
Based on this utility's own EIA Form 861 reliability record -- baseline (major-event- excluded) outage duration, total outage duration, and outage frequency -- each benchmarked against every reporting utility nationwide. Not a measure of electricity rates or customer service, which this portal does not track.
106 outage minutes per customer annually
Annual minutes without electric service (2023)
SAIDI by year (2020-2023)
Minutes per customer-year · EIA Form 861
Year-by-year SAIDI for Black Hills Colorado Electric, LLC from the same EIA filings as the table below. Lower is better; major-event years can spike the headline figure.
Black Hills Colorado Electric, LLC SAIDI trend
Black Hills Colorado Electric, LLC vs the nationwide SAIDI distribution
Where this utility's headline SAIDI sits among every EIA Form 861 utility with a reported figure
106 Lower than most fewer outage minutes than 65% of 911 utilities
Utilities nationwide, banded by latest reported SAIDI (minutes)
Each bar is a band; taller bars hold more utilities. The dashed line + filled bar mark this entry. Hover or tap any bar for its full count and share, and where it sits relative to this entry.
Source U.S. EIA Form 861 reliability filings · August 2026
Price vs. reliability
Where Black Hills Colorado Electric, LLC sits on price vs. reliability
Among the 781 U.S. utilities large enough to report both revenue per customer and a recent outage record, Black Hills Colorado Electric, LLC charges more per customer than 44% of them, and is more reliable (lower SAIDI) than 68% of them, placing it in the quadrant where it pays less while still being more reliable, the best-value quadrant. Revenue per customer and outage minutes are independent figures: paying more does not guarantee fewer outages.
Revenue per customer: $2,457/year · Latest SAIDI: 105.8 minutes/year.
SAIDI 2023 breakdown: 105.8 minutes
Reliability Trend (2020–2023)
| Year | SAIDI (min) | SAIDI nMED | SAIFI | Customers |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 | 74.1 | 65.0 | 1.871 | 98,735 |
| 2021 | 332.1 | 65.2 | 1.952 | 99,535 |
| 2022 | 229.0 | 87.3 | 1.696 | 100,423 |
| 2023 | 105.8 | 87.4 | 1.548 | 100,349 |
SAIDI nMED = SAIDI without major event days. Source: EIA Form 861.
Service Area
Black Hills Colorado Electric, LLC serves 72 ZIP codes in Colorado.
Frequently Asked Questions
How reliable is Black Hills Colorado Electric, LLC?
Black Hills Colorado Electric, LLC had a SAIDI of 105.8 minutes in 2023. Leaving aside major weather events, that figure comes in under the national average, pointing to above-average reliability.
What type of utility is Black Hills Colorado Electric, LLC?
Black Hills Colorado Electric, LLC is classified as a IOU serving Colorado.
How many customers does Black Hills Colorado Electric, LLC serve?
Black Hills Colorado Electric, LLC serves approximately 101,100 customers in Colorado.
How has Black Hills Colorado Electric, LLC's reliability changed over time?
Black Hills Colorado Electric, LLC has 4 years of reliability data (2020-2023). This utility's SAIDI has stayed fairly flat over the period. Review the trend table above for year-by-year detail.
Utility Profile
- Type
- IOU
- State
- Colorado
- Customers
- 101,100
- Annual Revenue
- $0.25B
- EIA ID
- 56146
Explore
Utilities with similar EIA profiles
Two cross-state peer sets for Black Hills Colorado Electric, LLC. Same-state SAIDI neighbors stay in Read-with below; these neighborhoods are nearest other-state utilities with at least 10,000 reported customers.
Similar customer count
Nearest utilities by Form 861 customers (101K here), outside Colorado.
Similar chronic SAIDI
Nearest utilities by latest SAIDI minutes (105.8 here), outside Colorado, excluding the customer-peer set.
Source: U.S. Energy Information Administration Form 861 annual electric power industry survey · ZIP service territory: OpenEI. Disclaimer: informational only, not professional advice. See full disclaimer · methodology.