How reliable is the power in North Dakota?
North Dakota ranks 15th of 45 states without major events and 4th with them (1st = fewest minutes), 42 below the U.S. 129 and 559 below the U.S. 662. Major events added 16 minutes, 15% of the with-events total. The figure covers 406,369 customers, 89% of the 457,572 EIA lists for North Dakota.
North Dakota with and without major events
minutes without power per customer, 2024, North Dakota and U.S.
- 87North Dakota, no major events
- 129U.S., no major events
- 103North Dakota, with major events
- 662U.S., with major events
| Measure | North Dakota without | North Dakota with | U.S. without | U.S. with |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| SAIDI, minutes per customer | 87 | 103 | 129 | 662 |
| SAIFI, interruptions per customer | 0.88 | 0.94 | 1.06 | 1.53 |
| CAIDI, minutes per interruption | 99 | 109 | 122 | 433 |
| Median utility, SAIDI minutes | 119 | 140 | — | — |
Which North Dakota utilities move the number
Otter Tail Power Co serves 15% of the customers in the North Dakota figure: 24% of lost customer-minutes with major events, 22% without.
- Otter Tail Power Co: 59,761 customers (15%), 130 min without and 171 with; 24% of lost minutes with major events, 22% without.
- Montana-Dakota Utilities Co: 98,017 customers (24%), 79 min without and 83 with; 20% of lost minutes with major events, 22% without.
- Mountrail-Williams Elec Coop: 19,103 customers (5%), 147 min without and 282 with; 13% of lost minutes with major events, 8% without.
All North Dakota utilities in the 2024 file
34 utilities in the 2024 EIA-861 files for North Dakota: 10 follow IEEE 1366, 2 use another method, 22 filed no reliability figures. 12 are listed.
| Cass County Elec Coop Inc | Cooperative | IEEE 1366 | 58,762 | 24 | 24 | 0.39 | 0.39 | 0 | 1 of 9 | — |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Verendrye Electric Coop Inc | Cooperative | IEEE 1366 | 20,677 | 37 | 37 | 0.70 | 0.70 | 0 | 2 of 9 | — |
| Northern States Power Co - Minnesota | Investor Owned | IEEE 1366 | 95,754 | 55 | 55 | 0.63 | 0.63 | 0 | 3 of 9 | — |
| Montana-Dakota Utilities Co | Investor Owned | IEEE 1366 | 98,017 | 79 | 83 | 0.95 | 0.99 | 6 | 4 of 9 | — |
| Nodak Electric Coop Inc | Cooperative | IEEE 1366 | 21,561 | 108 | 108 | 1.02 | 1.07 | 0 | 5 of 9 | — |
| Otter Tail Power Co | Investor Owned | IEEE 1366 | 59,761 | 130 | 171 | 1.13 | 1.35 | 24 | 6 of 9 | — |
| Mountrail-Williams Elec Coop | Cooperative | IEEE 1366 | 19,103 | 147 | 282 | 1.12 | 1.29 | 48 | 7 of 9 | — |
| McKenzie Electric Coop Inc | Cooperative | IEEE 1366 | 13,546 | 210 | 257 | 1.61 | 1.82 | 18 | 8 of 9 | — |
| Northern Plains Electric Coop | Cooperative | IEEE 1366 | 12,225 | 262 | 262 | 1.90 | 1.90 | 0 | 9 of 9 | — |
| Capital Electric Coop, Inc | Cooperative | Other method | 22,461 | 37 | 37 | 0.44 | 0.44 | — | Not ranked | other method, not comparable |
| Dakota Valley Elec Coop Inc | Cooperative | IEEE 1366 | 6,963 | 187 | 223 | 1.62 | 1.70 | 16 | Not ranked | under 10,000 customers |
| Lower Yellowstone R E A, Inc | Cooperative | Other method | 1,158 | 33 | 33 | 0.32 | 0.32 | — | Not ranked | other method, not comparable; under 10,000 customers |
North Dakota utilities with no reliability figures
22 in the sales file, no SAIDI or SAIFI row.
| Utility | Type | Customers |
|---|---|---|
| Roughrider Electric Cooperativ | Cooperative | 15,187 |
| North Central Elec Coop, Inc - (ND) | Cooperative | 7,592 |
| McLean Electric Coop, Inc | Cooperative | 4,278 |
| Slope Electric Coop Inc | Cooperative | 4,098 |
| Burke-Divide Electric Coop Inc | Cooperative | 3,495 |
| WAPA-- Western Area Power Administration | Federal | 21 |
| Basin Electric Power Coop | Cooperative | 1 |
| City of Park River - (ND) | Municipal | — |
| Central Power Elec Coop, Inc | Not stated | — |
| Cavalier Rural Elec Coop, Inc | Cooperative | — |
| Mor-Gran-Sou Electric Coop Inc | Cooperative | — |
| City of Hillsboro - (ND) | Municipal | — |
| KEM Electric Coop Inc | Cooperative | — |
| City of Riverdale - (ND) | Municipal | — |
| City of Cavalier - (ND) | Municipal | — |
| City of Maddock - (ND) | Municipal | — |
| Goldenwest Electric Coop, Inc | Cooperative | — |
| Traverse Electric Coop, Inc | Cooperative | — |
| City of Sharon- (ND) | Municipal | — |
| Sheridan Electric Coop, Inc | Cooperative | — |
| City of Valley City | Municipal | — |
| City of Northwood - (ND) | Municipal | — |
The biggest North Dakota utilities against the U.S.
- Northern States Power Co - Minnesota (investor owned, 21% of North Dakota customers in the file): SAIDI without major events 55 min, 75 below the U.S. 129; with major events 55 min against 662.
- Montana-Dakota Utilities Co (investor owned, 21% of North Dakota customers in the file): SAIDI without major events 79 min, 51 below the U.S. 129; with major events 83 min against 662.
- Cass County Elec Coop Inc (cooperative, 13% of North Dakota customers in the file): SAIDI without major events 24 min, 105 below the U.S. 129; with major events 24 min against 662.
- Otter Tail Power Co (investor owned, 13% of North Dakota customers in the file): SAIDI without major events 130 min, 0 above the U.S. 129; with major events 171 min against 662.
- Capital Electric Coop, Inc (cooperative, 5% of North Dakota customers in the file): reports on another method, SAIFI 0.44, not compared with the U.S. figure.
North Dakota by type of utility
Among North Dakota utilities that report under IEEE 1366, investor owned utilities average 82 minutes without major events and cooperative utilities 96.
| Type | Utilities | Customers | SAIDI without | Median utility | SAIDI with |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Investor Owned | 3 | 253,532 | 82 | 79 | 93 |
| Cooperative | 7 | 152,837 | 96 | 147 | 119 |
Next to North Dakota in the ranking
North Dakota report card
Smart meters: 89% of residential meters, 7 utilities (U.S. 92%). North Dakota time-based rates: 5 of 10 utilities, 10.1% of residential customers enrolled (U.S. 10.6%). North Dakota efficiency spend: $0.2 per customer (U.S. $124.2). Demand response: 872 W per customer (U.S. 77). North Dakota net-metered systems: 0.6 per 1,000 customers. Rankings.
Is your North Dakota utility better or worse than the North Dakota median?
- Loading.
More
- North Dakota against all states
- North Dakota utilities among the best and worst
- North Dakota utility reliability and price by company
- North Dakota major outage reports from the Department of Energy
- North Dakota electricity prices
- North Dakota help with your bill
12 North Dakota filings in EIA-861 2024 (retrieved 2026-10-01), 9 ranked utilities. Method and sources.
Questions
How many minutes without power did the average North Dakota customer have in 2024?
87 minutes without major events and 103 with them (10 IEEE 1366 utilities, customer-weighted).
Why do the two North Dakota numbers differ so much?
Major events add 16 of the 103 minutes (15%); Otter Tail Power Co supplies 24% of the with-events total.
Which North Dakota utility reported the fewest and the most minutes?
Among 9 utilities with 10,000+ customers: Cass County Elec Coop Inc 24 minutes without major events, and Northern Plains Electric Coop 262.
Which North Dakota utilities use which method?
10 follow IEEE 1366, 2 use another method, 22 filed no reliability figures.