Choctawhatchee Electric Cooperative (CHELCO) Rate Selection Guide
Choctawhatchee Electric Cooperative (CHELCO) is a member-owned, not-for-profit electric distribution cooperative serving roughly 66,500 members across four Florida panhandle counties. As a cooperative with no retail choice, CHELCO sets its own rates (regulated by the Florida PSC) and offers a modern Meridian-based member portal, though Green Button, public API, and documented EDI access are not available.
Choctawhatchee Electric Cooperative (CHELCO) Rate Schedule Comparison
| Schedule | Type | Rate | Best For |
|---|---|---|---|
| General Service - Non-Demand (GS) | commercial | $40-$53.50/mo customer + $0.06946/kWh total energy | Small/medium commercial without significant demand. |
| General Service - Demand (GS-D) | commercial | $60-$73.50/mo customer + $9.15/kW demand + $0.04265/kWh purchased power | C&I/farm with 50-499 kW demand. |
| Large Power Service (LP) | industrial | $75/mo customer + $8.95/kW demand + $0.04265/kWh purchased power | Large facilities at 500 kW and above. |
| Commercial Time-of-Use | commercial | On-peak / off-peak energy pricing (see tariff sheets) | Members able to shift load off peak. |
Market Overview
CHELCO is a member-owned cooperative; Florida has no retail electric competition. Members cannot choose an alternate supplier. Rates are board-set, FPSC-overseen, and pass through wholesale power costs from PowerSouth via adjustment clauses.
Need to pull your actual usage data to compare rates? See the Choctawhatchee Electric Cooperative (CHELCO) Data Access Guide →
Current Rate Schedules
CHELCO's C&I tariffs (effective April 1, 2025, filed with the Florida PSC) include General Service - Non-Demand, General Service - Demand (50-499 kW), and Large Power Service (500 kW and above), plus a Time-of-Use option. Bills combine a fixed Customer Charge, an Energy Charge (Purchased Power plus Distribution Delivery per kWh), and for demand schedules a Demand Charge per kW. A Wholesale Power Adjustment, Tax Adjustment, and Distribution Cost Adjustment may modify these rates. Figures below are verified from the FPSC tariff filing.
Effective: April 1, 2025 · Full Tariff Book →
| Schedule | Type | Applicability | Structure | Rate |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| General Service - Non-Demand (GS) | commercial | Commercial accounts without demand metering (below the 50 kW demand threshold). | Customer Charge $40.00 single-phase / $53.50 three-phase. Energy Charge $0.05174/kWh Purchased Power + $0.01772/kWh Distribution Delivery = $0.06946/kWh total. | — |
| General Service - Demand (GS-D) | commercial | Commercial, industrial, and farm services with consistent demand of 50-499 kW. | Customer Charge $60.00 single-phase / $73.50 three-phase. Demand Charge $2.95/kW Purchased Power + $6.20/kW Distribution Delivery = $9.15/kW total. Energy Charge $0.04265/kWh Purchased Power (plus distribution delivery and adjustments). Billing demand not less than 75% of the highest demand in the preceding eleven months. | — |
| Large Power Service (LP) | industrial | Consumers with consistent demand of 500 kW and above. | Customer Charge $75.00. Demand Charge $1.03/kW Purchased Power + $7.92/kW Distribution Delivery = $8.95/kW total. Energy Charge $0.04265/kWh Purchased Power. Billing demand not less than 500 kW nor less than 75% of contract capacity. | — |
| Commercial Time-of-Use Rate | commercial | Commercial members electing time-differentiated pricing to manage costs during peak periods. | Time-of-use energy pricing with on-peak/off-peak windows (panhandle peak hours vary by season). See CHELCO's TOU rate plan; specific per-kWh splits published on the tariff sheets. | — |
Rate Recommendations by Use Case
Small/medium commercial (under 50 kW)
Members below the demand threshold on GS pay a flat-energy structure ($0.06946/kWh total), so the priority is overall consumption efficiency rather than demand shaping.
No demand charge applies under 50 kW; energy cost is the whole bill aside from the customer charge.
- Use the CHELCO energy calculator
- Enable paperless billing and the MyCHELCO app
- Request a free energy audit from Energy Services
Mid-size C&I / farm (50-499 kW)
GS-D members face a $9.15/kW total demand charge with a 75% eleven-month ratchet, so a single peak month is costly for nearly a year.
The ratchet makes peak avoidance the single most important cost lever.
- Stagger startups to avoid coincident peaks
- Request smart-meter interval data for a demand audit
- Watch the Wholesale Power Adjustment for monthly swings
Large facility (500 kW+)
Large Power Service members should prioritize power-factor correction since billing demand uses the greater of kW or 90% of kVA, plus the 500 kW / 75% contract ratchet.
Demand at $8.95/kW with a kVA-based power-factor test rewards correction and steady operation.
- Install capacitor banks / PF correction
- Negotiate contract capacity carefully (75% ratchet)
- Engage CHELCO Energy Services for a load study
Multi-site energy/data team
With no Green Button, public API, or documented EDI, energy teams should rely on portal PDFs plus on-request CSV exports, and confirm smart-meter coverage before assuming interval data is available.
Data access is manual and meter-dependent; planning around it prevents onboarding surprises.
- Email memberbilling@chelco.com for bulk historical exports
- Confirm smart-meter status per site at (850) 892-2111
- Budget 5-10 business days for data requests
Historical Rate Trends
After more than a decade without a distribution-rate increase, CHELCO adjusted rates effective with the May 2025 bill (tariff sheets effective April 1, 2025). The new Distribution Delivery charge moved to $0.02210/kWh on residential and the prior Distribution Cost Adjustment of $0.003272 was eliminated, with parallel increases on commercial schedules.
April 1, 2025
First distribution-rate increase in over a decade; new tariff sheets effective (reflected in May 2025 bills). Distribution Cost Adjustment eliminated.
n/aOverall trend: Rising. First distribution-rate increase in over a decade took effect in 2025 to keep pace with rising wholesale and infrastructure costs.
Next expected change: Wholesale Power Adjustment may change monthly with PowerSouth fuel/power costs; next base distribution change set by the CHELCO board and FPSC filings.
Cost Optimization Strategies
For CHELCO C&I members, the dominant levers are managing peak demand (because of the 75% eleven-month ratchet) and improving power factor on large loads, plus leveraging CHELCO's free energy-audit services.
Demand Ratchet Management
For: GS-D and LP members
Avoid a single high-demand month, since billing demand is held at no less than 75% of the highest demand over the preceding eleven months.
Power Factor Correction
For: LP members and large GS-D loads
For loads over 500 kW, billing demand uses the greater of kW or 90% of kVA; correcting power factor reduces billed demand.
Time-of-Use Enrollment
For: Commercial members with flexible load
Commercial members able to shift load off peak can enroll in CHELCO's TOU rate to lower energy costs during peak windows.
CHELCO Energy Audit
For: All C&I members
Use CHELCO's free Energy Services audits and the energy calculator to identify efficiency opportunities and right-size loads.
To implement these strategies, you need your 15-minute interval data. Learn how to download Choctawhatchee Electric Cooperative (CHELCO) interval data →
Frequently Asked Questions
Can a CHELCO commercial member choose a competitive electricity supplier?▾
No. Florida has no retail electric competition and CHELCO is a member-owned cooperative, so it is the sole provider in its territory. C&I members take service under CHELCO's published General Service and Large Power tariffs, which are FPSC-overseen.
How are CHELCO commercial demand charges calculated?▾
On GS-D (50-499 kW) the total demand charge is $9.15/kW ($2.95 purchased power + $6.20 distribution); on Large Power Service (500 kW+) it is $8.95/kW. Billing demand cannot be less than 75% of the highest demand in the preceding eleven months.
Can a third party access a member's data programmatically?▾
Not via a public API. CHELCO has no Green Button, ESPI, or documented EDI. Authorized third parties get portal credentials with signed customer authorization, and interval/bulk data is provided as CSV/Excel on request (smart-meter dependent).
Is interval (15-minute) data available?▾
Only where a smart meter is installed, and only by manual request from CHELCO's Meridian CIS — AMI is not yet deployed system-wide. Members without a smart meter have monthly consumption data only.
What rate applies to a large facility above 500 kW?▾
Large Power Service (LP): $75/mo customer charge, $8.95/kW total demand charge, and $0.04265/kWh purchased power, with a billing-demand floor of 500 kW (and 75% of contract capacity) plus a kVA power-factor test.
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