Rates

North Central Electric’s basic residential electric rate is separated into two components, Cooperative Service and Fees and Purchased Power Charge.

The following is a summary of the rate schedule for residential consumers, effective
Jan. 1, 2013:

Residential Rate 01

The Purchased Power Adjustment, included in the bottom portion - a long with "Power Generation and Transmission," varies month to month with the cost of power. The Basic Service Charge covers the fixed costs of having poles, lines and meters in place. All members pay the Basic Service Charge $26, whether any kWhs are used.

North Central also offers load management rates for members who install a Load Control Switch on their electric water heater or their central air, heat pump or geothermal heating and cooling system.

Residential Rate TOD-01

All residential members are gradually transitioning to the Time of Day rate. As cooperative meter crews replace existing meters with the new digital meters, members are being moved to the Time of Day rate.

Once a member has the new meter installed by the cooperative, they no longer have to submit meter readings each month to the cooperative. The monthly electric use data will automatically be downloaded over North Central’s power lines to the cooperative’s office. The member’s monthly bill is then calculated from the electric use data that is transmitted to the cooperative.   

Members are notified by letter approximately six weeks prior to being switched to the new Time of Day rate. The transitioned into the new rate is being done systematically substation by substation.

All substations and metering points have the necessary communication equipment activated. Those members who have digital meters installed and are served by one of these substations have been transferred to the new Time of Day rate. Plans are to continue transferring new members to the TOD rate every month or two.

The new meters record the amount of electricity consumed and when it was consumed. Under the Time of Day rate, power consumed during on-peak periods costs slightly more than power consumed during off-peak periods.

Each month, the power bill from North Central’s wholesale power supplier, Buckeye Power, is calculated based on the five highest peak hours for the month. The cooperative does not know exactly when those peaks will occur each month, but it does have data that shows which hours those peaks will likely occur.

The peak hour periods for the winter and summer seasons are as follows:

• Winter: September 16 to May 15, on-peak hours are between 6 and 9 a.m. and 5 to 10 p.m. Monday through Friday.
• Summer: May 16 to September 15, on-peak hours are between 2 and 10 p.m. Monday through Friday.
• Weekends and most major holidays - with the exception of Thanksgiving - are considered off-peak. 

It’s expected to be 2013 until all new residential meters are installed. Once all meters are installed, there will be a 1-cent difference between the rates for on-peak and off-peak kilowatt hours. The cooperative’s data shows, on the average, approximately 70 percent of a member’s electric use - in a typical month - occurs during off-peak periods. With a 1-cent difference, there is very little difference in cost between the Time of Day rate and the existing residential rate.

Now is a great time for members to get used to the on-peak and off-peak periods. Over time the difference in off-peak and on-peak rates will gradually increase to 3 or 4 cents per kWh. Shifting power use to off-peak periods will help the members save.  

The following is a summary of the Time of Day rate schedule for residential consumers, effective Jan. 1, 2012:

Commercial and Industrial Rates
North Central is commercial and industrial rates are very competitive and vary depending on customer load profile and other factors.

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