Southern Maryland Electric Cooperative (SMECO) Rate Selection Guide
Southern Maryland Electric Cooperative (SMECO) is a member-owned electric distribution cooperative serving about 177,000 metered accounts across Calvert, Charles, St. Mary's, and Prince George's counties. SMECO has deployed AMI smart meters across its territory, offers 15-minute interval data and Green Button CSV downloads through its Account Manager portal, and operates a structured EDI trading-partner program supporting Maryland's retail electric choice market.
Southern Maryland Electric Cooperative (SMECO) Rate Schedule Comparison
| Schedule | Type | Rate | Best For |
|---|---|---|---|
| GSS — General Service Small | commercial | Energy ($/kWh) + PCA $0.024019/kWh; no demand charge | Small businesses, retail, offices |
| GSM — General Service Medium | commercial | Energy + demand; PCA $0.033789/kWh + $0.82/kW | Mid-size demand-metered facilities |
| GSL — General Service Large | commercial | Energy + demand; PCA $0.028850/kWh + $0.78/kW | Large commercial buildings, campuses |
| LP — Large Power | industrial | Energy + demand; PCA $0.030401/kWh + $0.86/kW | Industrial / manufacturing |
| T — Transmission Service | industrial | Energy + demand; PCA $0.057557/kWh + $0.72/kW | Transmission-level largest loads |
Market Overview
SMECO is a regulated electric distribution cooperative and default Standard Offer Service provider. Maryland's deregulated generation market lets members buy supply from licensed competitive suppliers. The Maryland Public Service Commission regulates distribution rates and the SOS supply rate.
Need to pull your actual usage data to compare rates? See the Southern Maryland Electric Cooperative (SMECO) Data Access Guide →
Current Rate Schedules
SMECO commercial and industrial customers are billed on demand-differentiated schedules: General Service Small (GSS), Medium (GSM), Large (GSL), Large Power (LP), and Transmission (T), each with SOS and Time-of-Use variants. Bills combine a fixed customer charge, base distribution/energy charges from the tariff, a monthly Power Cost Adjustment (PCA), and a Bill Stabilization Adjustment (BSA). For May 2026, SMECO's published PCA includes GS Medium $0.033789/kWh energy + $0.82/kW demand, GS Large $0.028850/kWh + $0.78/kW, and Large Power $0.030401/kWh + $0.86/kW; the residential/SOS Price to Compare is $0.134827/kWh. Exact base distribution charges are set in each tariff schedule PDF.
Effective: May 1, 2026 · Full Tariff Book →
| Schedule | Type | Applicability | Structure | Rate |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Schedule GSS — General Service Small | commercial | Small commercial accounts. May 2026 PCA: $0.024019/kWh energy, $0.00/kW demand; BSA +$0.006288/kWh. | Fixed customer charge + base energy ($/kWh) per tariff + PCA + BSA. SOS and TOU variants available. | — |
| Schedule GSM — General Service Medium | commercial | Medium demand-metered commercial accounts. May 2026 PCA: $0.033789/kWh energy + $0.82/kW demand; BSA +$0.005169/kWh. | Customer charge + base energy ($/kWh) + base demand ($/kW) per tariff + PCA + BSA. SOS and TOU variants. | — |
| Schedule GSL — General Service Large | commercial | Large demand-metered commercial accounts. May 2026 PCA: $0.028850/kWh energy + $0.78/kW demand; BSA +$0.004138/kWh. | Customer charge + base energy + base demand per tariff + PCA + BSA. SOS and TOU variants. | — |
| Schedule LP — Large Power | industrial | Large industrial / high-demand accounts. May 2026 PCA: $0.030401/kWh energy + $0.86/kW demand. | Customer charge + base energy + base demand per tariff + PCA. SOS and TOU variants. | — |
| Schedule T — Transmission Service | industrial | Transmission-level service for the largest loads. May 2026 PCA: $0.057557/kWh energy + $0.72/kW demand. | Customer charge + base energy + base demand per tariff + PCA. SOS and TOU variants. | — |
| Schedule EVPC — Electric Vehicle Public Charging | ev | Commercial public EV charging stations. | Dedicated EV charging rate; see tariff PDF for charges. | — |
Rate Recommendations by Use Case
Mid-size commercial facility (office/retail)
Verify GSM vs GSL classification and manage billed demand, since demand charges drive cost.
Medium/Large GS classes are demand-metered with $0.78-$0.82/kW PCA demand components on top of base tariff demand charges.
- Pull 15-minute interval data to find demand spikes
- Evaluate the TOU variant
- Confirm rate-class assignment with an energy analyst
Industrial / manufacturing site
Use Large Power or Transmission service with aggressive peak-shaving and competitive supply.
LP demand PCA is $0.86/kW; transmission-level service can lower delivery cost for very large, steady loads.
- Improve load factor to dilute demand charges
- Lock competitive supply to hedge the rising Price to Compare
- Model T vs LP economics for the largest loads
Small business
Stay on GSS and shop competitive supply against the Price to Compare.
GSS carries no demand charge (May 2026 PCA demand $0.00/kW), so the supply rate and energy charges dominate.
- Compare supplier offers at mdelectricchoice.com
- Enable paperless billing and alerts
- Use neighbor comparison and efficiency rebates
Fleet / EV charging operator
Evaluate the EVPC schedule for public charging depots.
A dedicated EV public-charging tariff exists; demand-heavy charging benefits from purpose-built rate design.
- Review EVPC tariff PDF for demand treatment
- Schedule charging off-peak where possible
- Track 15-minute interval data for demand management
Historical Rate Trends
SMECO publishes a monthly residential SOS 'Price to Compare' history. The supply rate has trended upward since 2021, rising from roughly $0.06/kWh in mid-2021 to $0.134827/kWh in May 2026.
May 1, 2026
May 2026 residential SOS Price to Compare set at $0.134827/kWh.
+40%May 1, 2025
May 2025 SOS Price to Compare was $0.096524/kWh.
+12%May 1, 2021
May 2021 SOS Price to Compare was $0.057873/kWh.
-2%Overall trend: Upward — the SOS Price to Compare roughly doubled between 2021 and 2026, with seasonal peaks in spring/summer.
Next expected change: SOS supply rates update monthly; distribution rate changes occur via Maryland PSC tariff filings (several pending as of 2026).
Cost Optimization Strategies
Because SMECO C&I bills are driven by demand ($/kW) charges and a shoppable supply component, the biggest levers are demand management, load-factor improvement, TOU optimization, and competitive supply procurement.
Demand (kW) management
For: GSM, GSL, LP, T
Stagger equipment startups and use controls/peak-shaving to cut monthly billed demand on GSM/GSL/LP schedules where PCA demand charges of $0.78-$0.86/kW apply on top of base tariff demand.
Time-of-Use rate optimization
For: All commercial schedules
Shift discretionary load off-peak under the TOU variant of your schedule; model savings with Account Manager's rate comparison tool.
Competitive supply procurement
For: All accounts (Maryland retail choice)
Benchmark licensed-supplier offers against the monthly Price to Compare ($0.134827/kWh in May 2026) and lock a fixed supply rate to hedge volatility.
Load-factor improvement
For: Demand-metered classes
Flatten the load profile so a given kWh consumption carries lower billed peak demand; use 15-minute interval data to find spikes.
Energy-analyst bill review
For: Commercial, institutional, government
Use SMECO's commercial energy analysts to verify rate-class assignment and disaggregate kW vs kWh drivers.
To implement these strategies, you need your 15-minute interval data. Learn how to download Southern Maryland Electric Cooperative (SMECO) interval data →
Deregulated Market Shopping
Maryland allows SMECO members to buy generation supply from a licensed competitive supplier through the Maryland Electric Choice program while SMECO remains the regulated delivery utility and default Standard Offer Service provider. SMECO publishes a monthly 'Price to Compare' so members can benchmark supplier offers against the SOS rate (May 2026 SOS Price to Compare: $0.134827/kWh).
How to Compare Southern Maryland Electric Cooperative (SMECO) Suppliers
- 01Find your SMECO Price to Compare (May 2026 residential SOS: $0.134827/kWh)
- 02Compare licensed supplier offers at mdelectricchoice.com or the Maryland PSC supplier directory
- 03Enroll directly with the chosen supplier; SMECO continues to deliver power and bill distribution
- 04If you do not shop, you stay on SMECO Standard Offer Service
Contract Terms for Southern Maryland Electric Cooperative (SMECO) Supply Agreements
- Fixed or variable supply rates per supplier contract
- Term length, early-termination fees, and renewal terms vary
- Supply charge replaces only the generation portion of the bill; SMECO distribution charges remain
Common Pitfalls When Shopping Southern Maryland Electric Cooperative (SMECO) Rates
- Introductory teaser rates that reset to high variable rates
- Automatic month-to-month renewal after a fixed term expires
- Compare apples-to-apples against the current Price to Compare, not a stale figure
Frequently Asked Questions
Can a C&I customer get 15-minute interval data from SMECO?▾
Yes. SMECO's AMI smart meters record 15-minute intervals. Commercial accounts can view hourly/15-minute detail in Account Manager's Energy Use Details and export it as a Green Button CSV. There is no real-time API, so exports are manual.
How does a consultant or energy manager pull our usage data?▾
Two paths: (1) the customer downloads Green Button CSV / bill PDFs from Account Manager and shares them, or (2) the consultant submits an authorized historical-data request to SMECO Supplier Support with written customer authorization and receives an Excel/CSV file in 5-10 business days. SMECO has no Connect My Data API.
Which rate schedule applies to our facility?▾
SMECO classifies non-residential load as General Service Small (GSS), General Service Medium (GSM), General Service Large (GSL), Large Power (LP), or Transmission Service (T), generally by demand level. Medium and larger schedules are demand-metered (kW) with separate energy (kWh) charges. Each schedule has SOS and Time-of-Use (TOU) variants.
Can we shop for a competitive electricity supplier?▾
Yes. Maryland is deregulated for generation supply. SMECO members can buy supply from a licensed competitive supplier while SMECO delivers the power. Compare offers to SMECO's monthly Price to Compare (May 2026 SOS: $0.134827/kWh).
Does SMECO offer Time-of-Use rates for businesses?▾
Yes. Each commercial schedule (GSS, GSM, GSL, LP, T) has a TOU variant in the published tariff. TOU can lower costs for facilities that can shift load away from on-peak periods; use Account Manager's rate comparison tool to model the impact.
Are demand charges part of the SMECO bill?▾
Yes, for medium and larger commercial classes. The May 2026 Power Cost Adjustment includes demand components (for example, $0.82/kW for GS Medium and $0.78/kW for GS Large), and the underlying tariff schedules set base demand charges in addition to energy ($/kWh).
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