States › Montana › Lower Yellowstone R E A, Inc
electric cooperative · EIA utility 11272
Lower Yellowstone R E A, Inc
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.
Lower Yellowstone R E A, Inc is an electric cooperative that reported 4,298 residential customers in Montana and 1 other state on Form EIA-861 for 2024, with a service territory that touches 5 counties.
Its average residential price that year was 8.86¢ per kilowatthour, 30% below the Montana average of 12.66¢ and 46% 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 $107.16 a month on average use of 1,210 kWh a month. Across Montana the average bill was $107.91 on 852 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 77.8 minutes per customer with major event days included and 77.8 minutes with them excluded, calculated under another method. The median among Montana utilities reporting was 352.4 minutes with major event days; this utility's figure is 78% below that median.
The average price is up 1.4% on 2019, against up 13.7% for Montana as a whole, and little changed on 2023. EIA's early release for 2025, which has not been fully edited, shows 9.15¢.
Compared with Montana, the US and other electric cooperatives
| Measure, 2024 | This utility | Electric cooperatives, US median | Montana | United States |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Average residential price per kWh | 8.86¢ | 13.74¢ | 12.66¢ | 16.48¢ |
| Average monthly residential bill | $107.16 | $149.95 | $107.91 | $142.26 |
| Average monthly use, kWh | 1,210 | 1,126 | 852 | 863 |
| Residential price change, 1 year | +0.7% | — | +1.0% | +3.0% |
| Residential price change, 5 years | +1.4% | — | +13.7% | +26.7% |
| SAIDI, all events (minutes) | 77.8 | 263.0 | 352.4 median | 184.5 median |
| SAIDI, without major event days | 77.8 | 147.0 | 177.2 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 9 filings by electric cooperatives in Montana, the median price was 11.39¢. In Montana this utility's price ranks 10 of 10, counting from the highest.
Average price by year
Lower Yellowstone R E A, IncMontana averageUS average
Year by year
| Year | ¢ per kWh | Montana ¢ | Monthly bill | kWh a month | Residential customers | All sales |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 early release | 9.15¢ | 12.98¢ | $109.52 | 1,196 | 3,927 | 534 GWh |
| 2024 | 8.86¢ | 12.66¢ | $107.16 | 1,210 | 4,298 | 455.1 GWh |
| 2023 | 8.80¢ | 12.54¢ | $107.62 | 1,223 | 4,270 | 388 GWh |
| 2022 | 8.61¢ | 11.33¢ | $114.04 | 1,325 | 4,236 | 323.2 GWh |
| 2021 | 8.69¢ | 11.22¢ | $116.69 | 1,343 | 4,222 | 281.6 GWh |
| 2020 | 8.75¢ | 11.24¢ | $111.59 | 1,275 | 4,252 | 256.5 GWh |
| 2019 | 8.74¢ | 11.13¢ | $111.30 | 1,273 | 4,237 | 279 GWh |
| 2018 | 8.36¢ | 10.96¢ | $110.00 | 1,316 | 4,215 | 260.8 GWh |
| 2017 | 8.42¢ | 10.95¢ | $112.30 | 1,334 | 4,209 | 261 GWh |
| 2016 | 8.01¢ | 10.94¢ | $99.13 | 1,237 | 3,956 | 266 GWh |
| 2015 | 8.26¢ | 10.88¢ | $102.83 | 1,245 | 3,924 | 267.5 GWh |
| 2014 | 8.49¢ | 10.18¢ | $103.92 | 1,225 | 3,865 | 244.6 GWh |
| 2013 | 7.52¢ | 10.33¢ | $98.20 | 1,306 | 3,521 | 217.5 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 | 4,298 | 62.4 GWh | 14% | $5,527,000 | 8.86¢ |
| Commercial | 891 | 21.6 GWh | 5% | $2,515,900 | 11.67¢ |
| Industrial | 1,197 | 371.1 GWh | 82% | $37,216,000 | 10.03¢ |
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: 456 GWh in total, of which 0% was its own net generation and 471.7 GWh was bought wholesale; summer peak demand 60 MW.
By state
| State | Residential customers | ¢ per kWh | State average ¢ | Monthly bill | SAIDI, all events |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Montana | 3,499 | 8.83¢ | 12.66¢ | $104.49 | 87.9 |
| North Dakota | 799 | 8.95¢ | 11.51¢ | $118.86 | 32.5 |
Reliability
Minutes of sustained interruption per customer in 2024, as the utility reported them under another method. SAIFI: 0.78 interruptions per customer with major event days, 0.78 without; CAIDI 100.0 minutes per interruption. EIA's Montana total across all reporting utilities was 351.5 minutes with major event days and 156.6 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 | 217.8 | 132.3 | 1.10 | 0.95 | Other |
| 2024 | 77.8 | 77.8 | 0.78 | 0.78 | Other |
| 2023 | 219.8 | 162.8 | 1.15 | 1.15 | Other |
| 2022 | 468.6 | 185.4 | 0.65 | 0.39 | Other |
| 2021 | 2,563.4 | 34.1 | 1.39 | 0.60 | Other |
| 2020 | 213.7 | 169.0 | 1.17 | 1.03 | Other |
| 2019 | 291.3 | 274.4 | 1.66 | 1.49 | Other |
| 2018 | 242.5 | 141.1 | 1.33 | 1.16 | Other |
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 Montana
| Utility | Ownership | Residential customers | ¢ per kWh | Monthly bill | SAIDI, all events | SAIDI, no major events |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Fergus Electric Coop, Inc | Cooperative | 6,682 | 15.52¢ | $124.30 | 1,238.9 | 443.9 |
| Missoula Electric Coop, Inc | Cooperative | 14,732 | 10.50¢ | $113.02 | 1,606.3 | 505.9 |
| Yellowstone Valley Elec Co-op | Cooperative | 21,182 | 13.35¢ | $120.60 | — | — |
| Flathead Electric Coop Inc | Cooperative | 63,317 | 9.67¢ | $116.16 | 586.4 | 235.2 |
| USBIA-Mission Valley Power | Federal | 16,292 | 8.91¢ | $116.92 | — | — |
| NorthWestern Energy LLC | Investor-owned | 328,421 | 14.23¢ | $101.19 | 233.4 | 117.9 |
All Montana utilities · Electric cooperatives nationwide
Questions and answers
How much does electricity cost from Lower Yellowstone R E A, Inc?
Residential customers paid an average of 8.86¢ 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 Montana?
The Montana average residential price in 2024 was 12.66¢ and the US average 16.48¢; Lower Yellowstone R E A, Inc was 30% below the state figure. Among 10 utility filings with a bundled residential price in Montana, it had the 10th highest.
What is the average Lower Yellowstone R E A, Inc bill?
$107.16 a month in 2024, on average residential use of 1,210 kWh a month (annual revenue and sales divided by customers and by twelve). The Montana average was $107.91 on 852 kWh.
How reliable is Lower Yellowstone R E A, Inc service?
It reported 77.8 minutes of interruption per customer (SAIDI) including major event days and 77.8 minutes excluding them, with 0.78 interruptions per customer (SAIFI) in 2024. Utilities calculate these under differing methods, so comparisons are approximate.
Is the Lower Yellowstone R E A, Inc price rising?
The average residential price was little changed in 2024 compared with 2023 and up 1.4% compared with 2019. EIA's early, not fully edited release for 2025 shows 9.15¢.
Which counties does Lower Yellowstone R E A, Inc serve?
Its Form EIA-861 service territory lists 5 counties: Dawson County, MT, Richland County, MT, Roosevelt County, MT, McKenzie County, ND and Williams County, ND. 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 "Lower Yellowstone R E A, Inc", utility number 11272; 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 30 Sep 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.