Montana Dakota Utilities Co

Information may not be reliable

North Dakota conservation rebates available
Montana-DakotaUtilities now has conservation rebates available to its North Dakota natural gas and electric customers. These programs are funded through the American Recovery Reinvestment Act (ARRA) and administered through the North Dakota Department of Commerce. Additional information can be found on the North Dakota Conservation page.
Montana-Dakota also offers conservation rebates in Montana, South Dakota and Wyoming.
Company files electric rate increase request with Montana PSC
Montana-Dakota Utilities filed an electric rate increase request on Aug. 12 with the Montana Public Service Commission. The company is requesting an electric rate increase of $5.5 million annually over current rates, or a 13-percent overall increase.
For an average residential customer using 750 kilowatt hours per month, the increase is about $8.60 a month, or approximately $103 per year.
For an overview of the increase request, view the Montana page.

N.D. PSC approves Big Stone II development costs settlement
The North Dakota Public Service Commission approved on June 25 a settlement agreement with Montana-Dakota Utilities and Commission Staff regarding development costs for the Big Stone II electric generation project. The agreement allows for recovery of North Dakotas share of the costs, approximately $9.6 million, over a three-year period.
Recovery is on a per kilowatt hour basis through the fuel cost adjustment. For a residential customer using 750 kwh per month, the increase will be about $1.50 a month. The charge will begin on Aug. 1, 2010.
Montana-Dakota Utilities will file an amended electric rate increase request with the commission, removing the Big Stone II development costs from the filing.
Interim rate increase approved by North Dakota PSC
The North Dakota Public Service Commission approved an interim electric rate increase to be effective with service rendered on or after June 18, 2010. The increase of $7.6 million annually translates into a monthly increase of $4.49 for a residential customer using 750 kilowatt hours of electricity.
The interim revenues are collected subject to refund pending the outcome of the PSCs final decision in the rate case, which is expected later this year.
A bill insert outlining the interim increase is included with customer bills. View bill insert.

Montana-Dakotaproposing new high-voltage power line
Montana-Dakota Utilities is in the early stages of planning a 30-mile high-voltage power line in southeast North Dakota to move power from a proposed wind farm to the electric grid. The new power lines would move power from a proposed 150-megawatt wind farm being built by enXco for Xcel Energy. Construction is expected to begin in the spring of 2011 with completion late in the year. Montana-Dakota will need certain state regulatory approvals before moving forward.
Montana-Dakota customers will not bear any of the costs associated with the project; those costs will be recovered through an approved interconnect tariff. The project is a 230-kilovolt transmission line extending approximately 30 miles from Montana-Dakotas facilities at Ellendale, N.D., to the proposed wind farm.
For more information, view the project website.
811 - Call Before You Dig
Montana-Dakota Utilities Co. encourages homeowners and contractors to call 811 before they dig to prevent injuries, property damage and inconvenient outages. The 811 hotline is a free service that will notify affected utilities of a persons intent to dig. Within a few days, the utility companies willmark the approximate location of the utility-owned lines with paint or flags. Utilities include electric, natural gas, cable television and telephone, among others. So remember, before you dig call 811.
More information is also available for each state in which Montana-Dakota operates: