What Winchester Municipal Utilities does

Winchester Municipal Utilities, legally operating as Winchester Utility System, is a non-profit municipal utility owned by the City of Winchester, Tennessee, and governed by the Board of Public Utilities under Mayor Sean Crabtree and four additional board members. Founded in 1939 to provide electric power and subsequently expanded into water and wastewater services, the utility serves approximately 20,000 residents and businesses in Winchester and surrounding Franklin County areas through three integrated service lines: electric power distribution (purchased wholesale from the Tennessee Valley Authority under a partnership dating to 1933), drinking water sourced from the Elk River via Tims Ford Lake and distributed through ~360 miles of water mains and 6 storage tanks, and wastewater collection and treatment.

The utility's technology stack centers on owned physical infrastructure (electric distribution network, water mains, wastewater treatment plant) supplemented by a Utility Nexus-based customer portal supporting online bill pay, billing history, energy usage data, autopay, and text/phone alert notifications for outages and account issues. The company is currently deploying an Advanced Metering Infrastructure (AMI) program (2026-2027) that will replace aging analog electric and water meters with digital meters enabling remote reading and hourly consumption data delivery, alongside Conservation Voltage Reduction (CVR) capability for the electric distribution system. Revenue is generated through monthly subscription billing across residential, commercial (GSA-1, GSA-2), and industrial (GSA-3) rate classes, with additional streams from tap/connection fees, security-light rentals, pole rentals, and reconnection fees. Distribution is exclusively direct-to-customer within the certificated service territory via the main office, drive-thru, customer portal, automated phone payments, mail, and a local bank partnership with Citizens Community Bank; the utility does not use resellers or channel partners and serves a horizontal mix of residential, commercial, and industrial customers with no disclosed anchor enterprise accounts.

Name

Winchester Municipal Utilities

Legal name

Winchester Utility System

Website

https://winchesterutilities.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1939

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

51–100 employees

Short description

Winchester Municipal Utilities is a non-profit City of Winchester, Tennessee-owned municipal utility providing electric, water, and wastewater services to approximately 20,000 residential, commercial, and industrial customers via owned distribution infrastructure and a TVA-supplied power partnership.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Municipal Utilities

NAICS

Water, Sewage and Other Systems (2213), Sewage Treatment Facilities (22132), Electric Power Transmission, Control, and Distribution (22112)

SIC

Water Supply (4941), Electric, Gas & Sanitary Services (4900)

akta.pro primary industry

Treated Water Storage & Pressure Management (Reservoirs, Tanks, Booster Stations) (EUANAAAD)

akta.pro secondary industry

Raw Water Conveyance & Transmission (Aqueducts, Mains, Pumping Stations) (EUANAAAB)

Keywords

• Municipal utility services
• Electric power distribution
• Drinking water supply
• Wastewater treatment
• Public utility infrastructure

Headquarters

HQ city

Winchester

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Infrastructure, Supply Chain, Personnel, Operations, Technology or R&D

Revenue model

1. Electric Service Revenue: Monthly charges for electric power distribution to residential, commercial, and industrial customers. Revenue comes from customer charges (minimum bills), base rate per kWh charges, and TVA Environmental/Fuel Cost Adjustment charges. Winchester Utility System is a non-profit company; any additional revenue is used to maintain and upgrade infrastructure.
2. Water Service Revenue: Monthly charges for water distribution based on gallon usage tiers. Inside city limits: $11.64 minimum bill, $5.58 per thousand gallons (1,001-10,000), $5.03 per thousand gallons (>10,000). Outside city limits have higher rates.
3. Wastewater/Sewer Service Revenue: Monthly sewer charges based on usage. Inside city limits: $22.36 minimum bill, $10.71 per thousand gallons (first tier), $9.67 per thousand gallons (second tier).
4. Security Light Rental: Monthly rental fees for dusk-to-dawn security lights including energy usage, maintenance, and bulbs. Options include High Pressure Sodium lights (100W: $10.37/mo, 250W: $16.58/mo), LED Flood Light (400W: $22.74/mo), and Mercury Vapor lights (175W: $11.83/mo for existing customers).
5. Tap Fees and Connection Fees: Non-refundable fees for new service connections including tap fees for water and sewer (3/4 inch: $850-$1,100 inside/outside city limits), sewer tap $1,000, and $20 non-refundable connection fee per service.
6. AMI Project Funding: Electric meter replacement funded through Winchester Utility System capital expense budget. Water meter replacement funded via TDEC State Revolving Fund loan with 20% debt forgiveness.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels7 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

Winchester Utility System is a municipal utility providing three core services to Winchester, TN and surrounding Franklin County areas: electric power distribution (purchased wholesale from the Tennessee Valley Authority since 1933), drinking water sourced from the Elk River via Tims Ford Lake and delivered through approximately 360 miles of water mains to about 20,000 residents, and wastewater collection and treatment. The utility supplements these services with a security light rental program, an online customer portal for bill payment and usage monitoring, and an Advanced Metering Infrastructure (AMI) modernization project (Winchester NEXT) deploying digital meters across the service territory.

Product overview

Winchester Utility System provides a unified portfolio of three core public utility services: electric power distribution (partnered with TVA since 1939), drinking water from the Elk River via Tims Ford Lake serving approximately 20,000 customers, and wastewater collection and treatment. These core services are supplemented by security lighting rental (offering various light types with monthly fees), a customer portal enabling online bill pay, usage monitoring, and Autopay, and an Advanced Metering Infrastructure (AMI) project deploying digital meters across the service territory to enable hourly consumption data and conservation voltage reduction efforts as part of the Winchester NEXT program.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Electric Service

Quantifiable outcome

• Water system meets all EPA health standards with annual testing for over 80 contaminants
• +2 more outcomes

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature3 records

Partnerships

Seven partnerships are on record, tiered core, minor and supporting.

• Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA)coreTechnology or Integration · 1 January 1933TVA has provided low-cost, reliable public power to Winchester Utility System customers since 1933. WUS operates as a power distributor for TVA, purchasing electricity which is then distributed to customers. TVA provides regulatory oversight for rates and service practice policies. TVA also provides a Complaint Resolution Process for unresolved customer disputes.
• Tullahoma Utility AuthorityminorOthersPeer utility within the Tennessee Valley used as reference for AMI equipment selection. Equipment chosen based on peer recommendations within the regional utility community.
• Shelbyville Power SystemminorOthersPeer utility within the Tennessee Valley used as reference for AMI equipment selection.
• Dickson ElectricminorOthersPeer utility within the Tennessee Valley used as reference for AMI equipment selection.
• Knoxville Utilities BoardminorOthersPeer utility within the Tennessee Valley used as reference for AMI equipment selection.
• Metro Nashville WaterminorOthersPeer utility within the Tennessee Valley used as reference for AMI equipment selection.
• Online Utility ExchangesupportingTechnology or IntegrationCredit history service used to determine residential deposit requirements. Provides color-coded credit ratings (Green/Yellow/Red) based on utility credit history from Experian to assess deposit amounts for new customers.

Scale indicators5 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Direct peers

• Johnson City Energy Authority: Tennessee municipal utility authority providing electric, water, and wastewater services in the Johnson City area; comparable multi-utility municipal operation under similar Tennessee regulatory and TVA power supply context.
• Cleveland Utilities: Tennessee municipal utility providing electric, water, and wastewater services to Cleveland, TN; closely comparable multi-service municipal utility operating in a similar regional Tennessee market under TVA power supply arrangements.
• Dickson Electric System: Tennessee municipal electric utility referenced by Winchester as an AMI peer; comparable TVA distributor serving a similarly-sized Tennessee community with overlapping customer base type and AMI deployment experience.
• Lebanon Utilities: Tennessee municipal utility providing electric, water, and wastewater services to Lebanon, TN; closely comparable multi-service municipal utility serving a similarly-sized Tennessee community with comparable TVA-distributor economics.
• Tullahoma Utility Authority: Tennessee municipal utility specifically referenced by Winchester as a peer for AMI equipment selection; comparable multi-service municipal utility operating electric, water, and wastewater in a similarly-sized Tennessee community.
• Shelbyville Power System: Tennessee municipal electric utility referenced by Winchester as an AMI peer; directly comparable TVA distributor serving a similarly-sized Tennessee community with overlapping regulatory and operational context.

Broad incumbents

• Knoxville Utilities Board: Large Tennessee municipal utility referenced by Winchester as an AMI peer; provides electric, gas, water, and wastewater services across the greater Knoxville metro, operating at materially larger scale but in the same regulated municipal utility space.
• Metro Nashville Water Services: Water and wastewater utility referenced by Winchester as an AMI peer; operates at significantly larger scale serving the Nashville metro area, providing direct comparability on water treatment, AMI deployment, and wastewater operations but with different governance scope.

Regional players

• Murfreesboro Water Resources Department: Tennessee municipal water and wastewater utility serving Murfreesboro, TN; comparable drinking water and wastewater operations with similar source water and distribution infrastructure profile, though serving a larger and faster-growing Tennessee community.
• Sevier County Utility District: Tennessee water and wastewater utility district serving Sevier County; comparable drinking water and wastewater treatment and distribution operations in a Tennessee service territory, though structured as a utility district rather than a municipal utility.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles14 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 Winchester Municipal Utilities