IOU · Montana · EIA 19545
Black Hills Power, Inc.
IOU · Montana · 73K customers. According to the U.S. Energy Information Administration's EIA Form 861, reliability for 2023 shows SAIDI 143 minutes/customer.
Reliability verdict
Black Hills Power, Inc. shows near-benchmark chronic reliability in 2023: 143 minutes SAIDI excluding major events across 73K customers.
- 143 min
- SAIDI 2023
- 1.40
- SAIFI 2023
- 143 min
- SAIDI ex-MED
- 73K
- 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 Power, Inc. filings show
Black Hills Power, Inc. is an investor-owned utility operating in Montana under EIA identifier 19545. It reports service to approximately 73,367 customer accounts and generated about $0.19 billion in annual electric revenue, with a service footprint spanning 33 ZIP codes. As an investor-owned utility, it operates under state public utility commission oversight that reviews rate cases and reliability performance.
In 2023, the average Black Hills Power, Inc. customer experienced 142.9 minutes of power interruptions, a measure known as SAIDI, or System Average Interruption Duration Index. That sits within the 120–180 minute national benchmark range, indicating performance typical of U.S. distribution utilities. The SAIFI figure, which tracks average outage events per customer, came in at 1.40 for the same period, meaning customers statistically saw about 1 distinct interruption that year. Strip out major event days (hurricanes, ice storms) and SAIDI falls to 142.9 minutes; the difference from the headline 142.9 shows how much of the outage total came from weather rather than everyday grid issues.
The EIA dataset includes 4 years of continuous reporting (2020–2023) for Black Hills Power, Inc., which lets you see whether reliability is trending up or down rather than judging from a single snapshot. Over that span, SAIDI rose from 13.4 to 142.9 minutes, possibly reflecting tougher weather years or grid upgrades that have not caught up yet.
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.
143 min/year per customer
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 Power, Inc. from the same EIA filings as the table below. Lower is better; major-event years can spike the headline figure.
Black Hills Power, Inc. SAIDI trend
Black Hills Power, Inc. vs the nationwide SAIDI distribution
Where this utility's headline SAIDI sits among every EIA Form 861 utility with a reported figure
143 Lower than most fewer outage minutes than 55% 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 Power, Inc. 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 Power, Inc. charges more per customer than 53% of them, and is more reliable (lower SAIDI) than 59% of them, placing it in the quadrant where it pays more and is more reliable. Revenue per customer and outage minutes are independent figures: paying more does not guarantee fewer outages.
Revenue per customer: $2,572/year · Latest SAIDI: 142.9 minutes/year.
SAIDI 2023 breakdown: 142.9 minutes
Reliability Trend (2020–2023)
| Year | SAIDI (min) | SAIDI nMED | SAIFI | Customers |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 | 13.4 | 8.3 | 0.100 | 44 |
| 2021 | 319.5 | 62.6 | 1.258 | 40 |
| 2022 | 216.8 | 216.8 | 1.677 | 41 |
| 2023 | 142.9 | 142.9 | 1.400 | 30 |
SAIDI nMED = SAIDI without major event days. Source: EIA Form 861.
Service Area
Black Hills Power, Inc. serves 33 ZIP codes in Montana.
Frequently Asked Questions
How reliable is Black Hills Power, Inc.?
Black Hills Power, Inc. had a SAIDI of 142.9 minutes in 2023. Excluding major storm impacts, this tracks roughly with the national average.
What type of utility is Black Hills Power, Inc.?
Black Hills Power, Inc. is classified as a IOU serving Montana.
How many customers does Black Hills Power, Inc. serve?
Black Hills Power, Inc. serves approximately 73,367 customers in Montana.
How has Black Hills Power, Inc.'s reliability changed over time?
Black Hills Power, Inc. 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
- Montana
- Customers
- 73,367
- Annual Revenue
- $0.19B
- EIA ID
- 19545
Explore
Utilities with similar EIA profiles
Two cross-state peer sets for Black Hills Power, Inc.. 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 (73K here), outside Montana.
Similar chronic SAIDI
Nearest utilities by latest SAIDI minutes (142.9 here), outside Montana, 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.