States › Virginia › City of Salem
municipal utility · EIA utility 16558
City of Salem
Average price is revenue divided by sales for the sector and year; it is not a tariff rate. Reliability figures are as reported by utilities to EIA on Form 861 and may use different calculation methods. Annual figures: Form EIA-861 for 2024, final release. Monthly state figures run to July 2026.
In its Form EIA-861 filing for 2024, City of Salem, a municipal utility, reported 11,298 residential customers in Virginia, with a service territory that touches 2 counties.
Its average residential price that year was 15.11¢ per kilowatthour, 4.9% above the Virginia average of 14.41¢ and 8.3% below the US average of 16.48¢. The figure is residential revenue divided by residential sales, so it folds in fixed charges, riders and every rate schedule the utility bills under.
That works out to an average residential bill of $139.02 a month on average use of 920 kWh a month. Across Virginia the average bill was $148.77 on 1,032 kWh, so a bill gap reflects how much power households use as well as what each kilowatthour costs.
For reliability it reported a SAIDI of 26.8 minutes per customer with major event days included and 26.8 minutes with them excluded, calculated under IEEE 1366 standard. The median among Virginia utilities reporting was 301.0 minutes with major event days; this utility's figure is 91% below that median.
The average price is up 30.3% on 2019, against up 19.4% for Virginia as a whole, and up 16.9% on 2023. EIA's early release for 2025, which has not been fully edited, shows 15.51¢.
Compared with Virginia, the US and other municipal utilities
| Measure, 2024 | This utility | Municipal utilities, US median | Virginia | United States |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Average residential price per kWh | 15.11¢ | 12.45¢ | 14.41¢ | 16.48¢ |
| Average monthly residential bill | $139.02 | $113.02 | $148.77 | $142.26 |
| Average monthly use, kWh | 920 | 905 | 1,032 | 863 |
| Residential price change, 1 year | +16.9% | — | +1.1% | +3.0% |
| Residential price change, 5 years | +30.3% | — | +19.4% | +26.7% |
| SAIDI, all events (minutes) | 26.8 | 64.4 | 301.0 median | 184.5 median |
| SAIDI, without major event days | 26.8 | 40.3 | 131.3 median | 99.8 median |
State and US prices, bills and use are EIA's own averages over every customer. The ownership column and the reliability columns are medians across utilities with at least 1,000 residential customers, computed on this site from the final 2024 file. Among the 5 filings by municipal utilities in Virginia, the median price was 11.63¢. In Virginia this utility's price ranks 6 of 19, counting from the highest.
Average price by year
City of SalemVirginia averageUS average
Year by year
| Year | ¢ per kWh | Virginia ¢ | Monthly bill | kWh a month | Residential customers | All sales |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 early release | 15.51¢ | 15.28¢ | $146.86 | 947 | 11,426 | 350.6 GWh |
| 2024 | 15.11¢ | 14.41¢ | $139.02 | 920 | 11,298 | 342.9 GWh |
| 2023 | 12.93¢ | 14.26¢ | $113.74 | 880 | 11,268 | 330.8 GWh |
| 2022 | 12.37¢ | 13.34¢ | $118.16 | 955 | 11,252 | 354.3 GWh |
| 2021 | 11.84¢ | 11.96¢ | $115.12 | 972 | 11,229 | 352.7 GWh |
| 2020 | 11.63¢ | 12.03¢ | $108.36 | 932 | 11,296 | 340.6 GWh |
| 2019 | 11.60¢ | 12.07¢ | $110.68 | 954 | 11,270 | 359 GWh |
| 2018 | 11.58¢ | 11.73¢ | $114.68 | 991 | 11,222 | 370.6 GWh |
| 2017 | 11.65¢ | 11.55¢ | $107.90 | 926 | 10,978 | 353 GWh |
| 2016 | 11.63¢ | 11.36¢ | $110.57 | 951 | 10,979 | 352.6 GWh |
| 2015 | 11.77¢ | 11.37¢ | $114.38 | 972 | 10,974 | 375.1 GWh |
| 2014 | 11.48¢ | 11.10¢ | $113.11 | 985 | 11,073 | 373.9 GWh |
| 2013 | 11.41¢ | 10.84¢ | $109.28 | 958 | 11,271 | 372.5 GWh |
Bundled residential service only in the price, bill and use columns. Bill = residential revenue ÷ customers ÷ 12; use = residential sales ÷ customers ÷ 12. EIA describes its early release as not fully edited; it is shown for this utility alone and enters no average, median or rank on this site.
Sales by sector, 2024
| Sector | Customers | Sales | Share of sales | Revenue | ¢ per kWh, bundled |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Residential | 11,298 | 124.7 GWh | 36% | $18,847,500 | 15.11¢ |
| Commercial | 2,152 | 96.9 GWh | 28% | $14,485,900 | 14.96¢ |
| Industrial | 69 | 121.4 GWh | 35% | $15,670,400 | 12.91¢ |
Customers, sales and revenue count every service type the utility reported (bundled, energy-only and delivery-only). The price column uses bundled service alone, because part-bill revenue would understate it. Sources of energy: 360.8 GWh in total, of which 0% was its own net generation and 360.8 GWh was bought wholesale; summer peak demand 79 MW.
Reliability
Minutes of sustained interruption per customer in 2024, as the utility reported them under IEEE 1366 standard. SAIFI: 0.24 interruptions per customer with major event days, 0.24 without; CAIDI 111.1 minutes per interruption. EIA's Virginia total across all reporting utilities was 418.3 minutes with major event days and 166.4 without. Major event days are storms and similar events that a utility's chosen method sets apart; methods differ, so treat comparisons as approximate. What SAIDI and SAIFI mean.
| Year | SAIDI, all events | SAIDI, no major events | SAIFI, all events | SAIFI, no major events | Method |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 early release | 27.6 | 27.6 | 0.29 | 0.29 | IEEE 1366 |
| 2024 | 26.8 | 26.8 | 0.24 | 0.24 | IEEE 1366 |
| 2023 | 22.7 | 22.7 | 0.25 | 0.25 | IEEE 1366 |
| 2022 | 13.6 | 13.6 | 0.15 | 0.15 | IEEE 1366 |
| 2021 | 28.7 | 28.7 | 0.27 | 0.27 | IEEE 1366 |
| 2020 | 10.2 | 10.2 | 0.23 | 0.23 | IEEE 1366 |
| 2019 | 15.8 | 15.8 | 0.12 | 0.12 | IEEE 1366 |
| 2018 | 27.1 | 14.6 | 0.33 | 0.21 | IEEE 1366 |
| 2017 | 18.7 | 14.8 | 0.27 | 0.24 | IEEE 1366 |
| 2016 | 34.7 | 18.0 | 0.32 | 0.23 | IEEE 1366 |
| 2015 | 21.3 | 12.0 | 0.23 | 0.13 | IEEE 1366 |
| 2014 | 17.5 | 10.3 | 0.27 | 0.14 | IEEE 1366 |
Counties in its service territory
Counties the utility listed on Form EIA-861 for 2024. Listing a county does not mean the utility serves all of it.
Other utilities in Virginia
| Utility | Ownership | Residential customers | ¢ per kWh | Monthly bill | SAIDI, all events | SAIDI, no major events |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bristol Virginia Utilities | Municipal | 13,633 | 10.99¢ | $131.51 | 530.4 | 36.1 |
| City of Manassas | Municipal | 13,947 | 11.63¢ | $115.49 | 55.7 | 27.6 |
| City of Harrisonburg | Municipal | 18,089 | 11.36¢ | $106.53 | 15.6 | 15.6 |
| City of Danville | Municipal | 37,781 | 15.01¢ | $149.24 | — | — |
| Prince George Electric Coop | Cooperative | 10,954 | 13.05¢ | $169.62 | 280.0 | 90.6 |
| Northern Neck Elec Coop, Inc | Cooperative | 17,991 | 16.12¢ | $181.68 | — | 168.9 |
| Virginia Tech Electric Service | State | 5,660 | 17.18¢ | $135.12 | 9.1 | — |
| Mecklenburg Electric Cooperative | Cooperative | 30,151 | 14.50¢ | $141.10 | 360.2 | 273.8 |
All Virginia utilities · Municipal utilities nationwide
Questions and answers
How much does electricity cost from City of Salem?
Residential customers paid an average of 15.11¢ per kilowatthour in 2024. EIA derives this by dividing residential revenue by residential sales; it is an average across all rate schedules and charges, not a tariff rate.
How does that compare with Virginia?
The Virginia average residential price in 2024 was 14.41¢ and the US average 16.48¢; City of Salem was 4.9% above the state figure. Among 19 utility filings with a bundled residential price in Virginia, it had the 6th highest.
What is the average City of Salem bill?
$139.02 a month in 2024, on average residential use of 920 kWh a month (annual revenue and sales divided by customers and by twelve). The Virginia average was $148.77 on 1,032 kWh.
How reliable is City of Salem service?
It reported 26.8 minutes of interruption per customer (SAIDI) including major event days and 26.8 minutes excluding them, with 0.24 interruptions per customer (SAIFI) in 2024. Utilities calculate these under differing methods, so comparisons are approximate.
Is the City of Salem price rising?
The average residential price was up 16.9% in 2024 compared with 2023 and up 30.3% compared with 2019. EIA's early, not fully edited release for 2025 shows 15.51¢.
Which counties does City of Salem serve?
Its Form EIA-861 service territory lists 2 counties: Roanoke County, VA and Salem city, VA. A county can appear in several utilities' territories.
Provenance
Source: U.S. Energy Information Administration. Annual figures are from Form EIA-861 (sales to ultimate customers, reliability, operational data and service territory files), final release for 2024, respondent "City of Salem - (VA)", utility number 16558; the 2025 row is from EIA's early release. State and US averages are from the Form EIA-861M sales and revenue workbook, published through July 2026. All are US government works in the public domain. Page built 1 Oct 2026. Errors in processing are corrected at the next build; see corrections. For tariffs and rate schedules, consult the utility or the state utility commission.