SDREA

What SDREA does

SDREA (South Dakota Rural Electric Association) is the statewide member-owned service organization for 31 electric cooperatives in South Dakota, structured as a not-for-profit cooperative association. Incorporated in 1942 and headquartered in Pierre, SD, SDREA unifies 28 distribution cooperatives (serving more than 126,000 homes, farms, and businesses) and 3 generation-and-transmission cooperatives (Basin Electric, East River Electric, Rushmore Electric) that collectively serve 325,000 South Dakotans across 65,000 miles of distribution line covering 90% of the state's land mass. Its mandate is to provide leadership, training, communication, and legislative representation to its member cooperatives. Core products are service programs rather than discrete software products: a loss-control/safety program (RESAP, OSHA/EPA/DOT compliance training, mutual-aid coordination); a real-time statewide outage map (outages.sdrea.coop) that aggregates data from each member co-op with 15-minute refresh and county/cooperative-level granularity; a Legislative Mobile App that catalogs state and federal elected officials; and a members-only secure portal. Ancillary programs include Co-op Connections discounts, energy-savings content from Touchstone Energy, and youth leadership pipelines (Youth Tour — 1,350+ students sent to Washington, D.C. since 1963 — and Connect Con at Black Hills State University). The revenue model is recurring membership dues from the 31 member cooperatives plus associate-member partner fees; pricing is not publicly disclosed. SDREA distributes through direct enterprise sales to its member cooperatives and through Touchstone Energy's national brand network of 700+ systems across 46 states.

Name

SDREA

Legal name

South Dakota Rural Electric Association

Website

https://sdrea.coop

Company type

Private

Founded year

1942

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

SDREA (South Dakota Rural Electric Association) is a member-owned, not-for-profit statewide service association founded in 1942 that unifies 31 South Dakota electric cooperatives (28 distribution + 3 G&T) serving 325,000 South Dakotans through training, legislative advocacy, real-time outage mapping, loss control, and youth leadership programs.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Electric Cooperative Member Services

NAICS

Business Associations (813910), Business, Professional, Labor, Political, and Similar Organizations (8139)

SIC

Services-Membership Organizations (8600), Electric Services (4911)

akta.pro primary industry

Electric Cooperatives (Rural/Member-Owned Utilities) (EUADABAC)

Keywords

• Electric cooperative services
• Rural electric utilities
• Legislative advocacy
• Outage management
• Cooperative training

Headquarters

HQ city

Pierre

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Others

Revenue model

1. Member Cooperative Services / Membership Dues: SDREA is a member-owned, member-controlled association that funds its operations through membership dues and service fees from its 31 electric cooperative members. The association provides services including training, legislative representation, communications, loss control, and storm coordination. As a not-for-profit cooperative service organization, revenue supports the cooperative network rather than generating profit.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels7 records

Core offering

SDREA is a member-owned, member-controlled service association for 31 electric cooperatives in South Dakota (28 distribution co-ops and 3 generation & transmission co-ops). It provides centralized services including legislative representation at the state and federal level, safety and loss control coordination, training and professional development, communications, mutual aid and storm response coordination, and youth leadership programs (Youth Tour and Connect Con).

Product overview

SDREA (South Dakota Rural Electric Association) is a member services organization for 31 electric cooperatives in South Dakota, formed in 1942. Rather than offering a unified software product, SDREA provides a portfolio of programs, services, and tools including the SDREA Mobile App, Legislative App, and Outage Map web application for real-time outage tracking. The organization delivers member benefits through the Co-op Connections program, offers safety and loss control services, and runs youth leadership programs including Youth Tour and Connect Con. Their services also include legislative advocacy, training programs, and publications such as the monthly Cooperative Connections magazine.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• South Dakota Legislative Guide: Digital resource of South Dakota's federal and state elected officials along with information about South Dakota's electric cooperatives, featuring interactive map, live phone numbers, email, website and social media links.

Products and services

• SDREA Real-Time Outage Map Online outage mapping system that aggregates real-time outage data from each individual electric cooperative member of SDREA, showing outage locations by county and cooperative with automatic 15-minute refresh. Available to cooperatives, consumers, and the public for situational awareness during outage events.
• SDREA Mobile App A mobile application providing real-time outage information and access to cooperative services for South Dakota electric cooperative members and consumers.
• Legislative Mobile App A digital resource available on Google Play providing contact information for South Dakota's federal and state elected officials, an interactive legislative district map, live phone numbers, email, website, and social media links — used by cooperative members, staff, and consumers for legislative engagement.
• Loss Control Services Comprehensive loss control services for member electric cooperatives including safety program development, technical training programs, OSHA/EPA/DOT regulation monitoring, statewide safety manual publication, and storm damage assistance coordination across South Dakota.
• Legislative Services Comprehensive legislative advocacy services including state and federal legislative monitoring, lobbying, Public Utilities Commission participation, ACRE political action contributions, rural development assistance, and district legislative meetings on behalf of South Dakota's electric cooperatives.
• Safety Training Programs Safety and technical training offerings for member cooperative staff including Apprenticeship Program, Meter School, Rubber Gloving School, Underground School, CPR/First Aid Certification, and High Voltage Demonstration Trailer access.
• Co-op Connections Program A member savings program available through Touchstone Energy offering prescription discounts, dental, vision, hearing, and lab work discounts, hotel savings, cash back shopping, and event discounts through partnerships with national and local merchants for cooperative consumer-members.
• Youth Tour Program Annual youth leadership program sending South Dakota high school students from member cooperative service territories to Washington, D.C. to learn about electric cooperatives, government, and leadership skills, with national scholarship eligibility through the Glenn English Foundation of up to $10,000.
• Connect Con Youth Leadership Experience A youth leadership experience held at Black Hills State University featuring speakers on energy sector careers, cooperative education, safety demonstrations, and leadership development activities for high school students from member cooperative service territories.
• Cooperative Connections Magazine A monthly publication by SDREA, East River Electric, and Rushmore Electric providing reliable, helpful information to members on electric cooperative matters and rural living; also distributed as a digital PDF.
• Touchstone Energy Savings Resources Energy savings resources offered to cooperative consumer-members through SDREA including the Home Energy Adventure Tour, energy solutions information, and educational videos on heating, cooling, lighting, and insulation, delivered through partnership with Touchstone Energy Cooperatives.

Quantifiable outcome

• 83rd Annual Meeting in Jan 2026 with 300+ cooperative leaders and participation by nearly 100 state lawmakers.
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers3 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature1 record

Partnerships

Four partnerships are on record, tiered flagship and core.

• National Rural Electric Cooperative Association (NRECA)flagshipStrategic or Co-development PartnerNRECA is the national service organization for America's electric cooperatives. SDREA is a member of NRECA, which provides advocacy at the federal level, director training programs (Credentialed Cooperative Director, Board Leadership), the Balanced Performance Scorecard tool, Youth Tour coordination, insurance programs, and technology solutions. NRECA CEO Jim Matheson addresses SDREA's annual meetings.
• Touchstone Energy CooperativesflagshipStrategic or Co-development PartnerTouchstone Energy is the national brand identity for electric cooperatives across 46 states, serving 30.5 million member-owners through 700+ local systems. SDREA is a member of Touchstone Energy, which provides brand resources, savings programs (Co-op Connections), the Home Energy Adventure tool, energy efficiency videos, and a national network for cross-promotion and best-practice sharing.
• Basin Electric Power CooperativecoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerBasin Electric is a generation and transmission cooperative and SDREA member. As one of the largest cooperative G&Ts in the country (seven-state service area), Basin supplies wholesale power to many SDREA member distribution co-ops. SDREA conducts an annual meeting and conducts Youth Tour/Consumers Tour to Basin Power Plants.
• South Dakota One Call (SD 811)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerSouth Dakota One Call (dial 811) is the state's underground utility locating service required before digging. SDREA participates in One Call administration, monitors regulations, and refers members and consumers to the service. SD 811 is listed as an associate member of SDREA.

Scale indicators7 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Market position

Competitive moat5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/sdcooppower
• Facebookfacebook.com/SDRuralElectricAssociation
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/south-dakota-rural-electric

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles7 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about SDREA