What KEM Electric Cooperative does

KEM Electric Cooperative, Inc. is a private, member-owned electric distribution cooperative headquartered in Linton, North Dakota. The cooperative was organized in 1944 and incorporated on April 5, 1944, with the first substation energized on April 2, 1949; its name reflects three of the counties in its original service area (Kidder, Emmons, and McIntosh), with Logan County added later. KEM serves 2,184 member-owners across 3,708 square miles in south central North Dakota through 2,770 miles of distribution lines and 12 distribution substations (Danzig, Linton, Napoleon, Sukut, Krassna, Steele, Tappen, Hazelton, Ashley, Zeeland, Sunburst, and Midway), with the Dawson sub retired and the Herbert Weber Substation at Dawson connected directly to the Western Area Power Administration transmission line at 230/41.6 kV.

The cooperative's core product is electric power distribution to residential and agricultural members, supported by infrastructure technology including SCADA (Supervisory Control and Data Acquisition) systems being expanded to additional substations, TripSaver Reclosures replacing aged oil-circuit reclosures, voltage regulators, and an annual pole testing program covering approximately 6,500 utility poles. Member-facing technology is limited to SmartHub, a self-service portal and mobile application for bill payment, outage reporting, and account management, plus a public outage map. The cooperative also operates community programs including Operation Round Up, scholarships, youth tours, and a capital credits patronage refund program.

KEM's business model is a regulated subscription utility: members pay monthly electric bills, and margins are returned to members as capital credits based on usage. Governance is democratic, with a 7-member board of directors elected by the membership to 3-year terms across 5 geographic districts plus an at-large seat. KEM is led by Co-General Managers/CEOs Travis Kupper and Jason Bentz, CFO Alex Craigmile, Chief of Staff/Line Superintendent Dale Nagel, and Manager of Member Relations Marcy Sanders. The cooperative jointly controls Innovative Energy Alliance Cooperative for engineering and construction project planning, and the Herbert Weber Substation is operated under arrangement by Montana-Dakota Utilities Company of Bismarck. KEM reports as a recipient of federal assistance from the U.S. Department of Agriculture.

Name

KEM Electric Cooperative

Legal name

KEM Electric Cooperative, Inc.

Website

https://kemelectric.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1944

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

KEM Electric Cooperative is a private, member-owned electric distribution cooperative serving 2,184 residential and agricultural members across 3,708 square miles in south central North Dakota through 12 substations and 2,770 miles of distribution lines.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Rural Electric Distribution

NAICS

Electric Power Distribution (221122), Electric Power Transmission, Control, and Distribution (22112)

SIC

Electric Services (4911)

akta.pro primary industry

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

akta.pro secondary industries

Electric Distribution System Owners (Wires-Only Companies) (EUADABAI), Network Upgrades & Capacity Additions (Reconductoring, Rebalancing, Voltage Optimization) (EUAEACAN)

Keywords

• Rural electric distribution
• Electric cooperative service
• Power line distribution
• Member-owned utility
• Electrical energy delivery

Headquarters

HQ city

Linton

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Electric Distribution Services: KEM Electric generates revenue through electricity distribution to residential and agricultural members across rural North Dakota. Members pay for electricity service, and the cooperative returns capital credits to members based on their usage.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels2 records

Marketing channels7 records

Core offering

KEM Electric Cooperative distributes electricity to member-owners across rural south central North Dakota, operating more than 2,770 miles of distribution lines and 12 substations serving 2,184 members. The cooperative, incorporated in 1944 and headquartered in Linton, ND, supplies electric power to farms, residences, and small businesses in Emmons, McIntosh, Logan, and Kidder Counties. It also supports members with account management tools such as the SmartHub online portal, capital credit allocations, outage management, and community programs.

Product overview

KEM Electric Cooperative is a single-product electric utility cooperative offering power distribution services to rural members in south central North Dakota. The cooperative operates a unified infrastructure network delivering electricity across 3,708 square miles with 2,770 miles of distribution lines serving 2,184 members. The primary member-facing technology is SmartHub, a self-service portal enabling bill payment, outage reporting, and account management. Additional services include Capital Credits (member benefit distributions), Operation Round Up (charitable giving), safety education programs, and youth development initiatives. Infrastructure technology includes SCADA monitoring systems, TripSaver reclosures for fault detection, and ongoing pole testing and underground cable installation programs.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Electric Power Distribution Distribution of electric power to residential, agricultural, and small commercial members in Emmons, McIntosh, Logan, and Kidder Counties of North Dakota.
• SmartHub Member Portal Online account management portal allowing members to view and pay electric bills, monitor usage, and manage their cooperative account.
• Capital Credits Program
• Outage Management System
• Pole Testing Services

Named customers1 record

Segments1 record

Ideal customer profiles1 record

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature4 records

Partnerships

Two partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Innovative Energy Alliance CooperativecoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerKEM Electric works with a team of engineers at Innovative Energy Alliance Cooperative to diligently plan construction projects for the year. Planning these projects allows KEM Electric to obtain easements, gather materials and allot the appropriate amount of time to complete the projects.
• USDA (U.S. Department of Agriculture)minorOthersKEM Electric Cooperative, Inc. is a recipient of federal assistance from the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA). In accordance with Federal civil rights law and USDA civil rights regulations and policies, the USDA, its Agencies, offices and employees, and institutions participating in or administering USDA programs are prohibited from discriminating based on various protected classes.

Scale indicators5 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights3 records

Regional players

• Basin Electric Power Cooperative: Large generation-and-transmission cooperative serving member distribution co-ops across the upper Midwest and West; a comparable cooperative counterpart in the broader cooperative power ecosystem relevant to KEM's wholesale supply structure.
• Minnkota Power Cooperative: Regional generation-and-transmission cooperative serving distribution co-ops across North Dakota and Minnesota; comparable as KEM's likely wholesale power supplier and G&T cooperative counterpart in the same cooperative ecosystem.

Others

• Touchstone Energy Cooperatives: National network and brand for member-owned electric cooperatives; KEM displays the Touchstone Energy brand and participates in shared marketing, safety, and youth programs, making this a directly relevant ecosystem peer for shared services.

Broad incumbents

• Montana-Dakota Utilities Co. Investor-owned utility serving portions of North Dakota, South Dakota, and Montana; relevant because Montana-Dakota operates KEM's Herbert Weber Substation and is the broader incumbent utility in adjacent North Dakota service territories.

Direct peers

• Capital Electric Cooperative: North Dakota rural electric distribution cooperative serving members in central North Dakota; a direct peer with similar member-owned distribution model, scale, and rural agricultural customer base as KEM.
• Verendrye Electric Cooperative: North Dakota rural electric distribution cooperative serving north central North Dakota; a direct peer operating the same rural member-owned distribution model and similar agricultural/residential member profile as KEM.
• Mor-Gran-Sou Electric Cooperative: North Dakota rural electric distribution cooperative serving Morton, Grant, Sioux, and surrounding counties; directly comparable rural member-owned distribution co-op with similar infrastructure and customer profile to KEM.
• Cass County Electric Cooperative: North Dakota rural electric distribution cooperative serving the Fargo-area region; directly comparable as a Touchstone Energy member-owned distribution co-op operating under the same cooperative regulatory and governance model as KEM.
• Roughrider Electric Cooperative: North Dakota rural electric distribution cooperative based in Hazen; directly comparable member-owned rural distribution co-op operating substations and distribution lines for agricultural and residential members.
• North Central Electric Cooperative: North Dakota rural electric distribution cooperative based in Bottineau; directly comparable as a small rural distribution co-op serving agricultural members across northern North Dakota with similar operating characteristics.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/KEMElectric
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/kem-electric-cooperative
• Instagraminstagram.com/kemelectric

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles6 records

Subsidiaries1 record

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 KEM Electric Cooperative