Nobles Cooperative Electric

What Nobles Cooperative Electric does

Nobles Cooperative Electric is a member-owned rural electric distribution cooperative founded in 1936, headquartered in Slayton, Minnesota, with a secondary office in Worthington. The cooperative distributes electricity under a regulated cost-of-service model to over 6,800 residential and commercial members across Nobles and Murray Counties in southwest Minnesota, holding an exclusive government-granted service territory. The cooperative's core product is electricity distribution through owned infrastructure — poles, wires, and substations — supplemented by a digital member-facing platform built on the industry-standard NISC SmartHub (web portal plus iOS/Android app) for billing, payments, paperless enrollment, account alerts, and daily/hourly usage monitoring. Operational tooling includes a real-time outage map and a GREnergy-powered load control status system for managing demand response across the territory.

The cooperative operates as a not-for-profit, member-owned entity under cooperative principles: any margins exceeding costs are returned to members as capital credits rather than distributed to external shareholders. Board governance is by elected member representatives, and member engagement is reinforced through a community involvement program that includes Operation Round Up giving, scholarships, the Voices for Cooperative Power advocacy network, monthly Current Matters newsletter, a podcast featuring employee and member stories, and active participation in local parades, fairs, and annual Grab-N-Go events. Additional member-facing offerings include residential and commercial energy-efficiency rebates, renewable energy guidance, energy assistance programs, a medical alert priority reconnection service, and electric vehicle content.

Revenue is generated from monthly recurring electricity distribution charges, with pricing subject to regulatory approval rather than market competition. Power supply is procured through a long-standing partnership with generation and transmission cooperative Great River Energy, on whose board Nobles holds a director seat. The cooperative is privately held, has no parent company, no subsidiaries, no funding rounds, and no disclosed M&A activity. The reported headcount of 6 is inconsistent with utility operations requiring line crews and 24/7 outage response and is likely a data quality issue; this should be verified before relying on per-employee metrics.

Name

Nobles Cooperative Electric

Legal name

Nobles Cooperative Electric

Website

https://noblesce.coop

Company type

Private

Founded year

1936

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Nobles Cooperative Electric is a member-owned rural electric distribution cooperative, founded in 1936, serving over 6,800 residential and commercial members across Nobles and Murray Counties in southwest Minnesota under a regulated cost-of-service model with exclusive service territory rights.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Rural Electric Utility Distribution

NAICS

Electric Power Distribution (221122), Electric Power Generation, Transmission and Distribution (2211), Utilities (221)

SIC

Electric Services (4911), Electric, Gas & Sanitary Services (4900)

akta.pro primary industry

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

Keywords

• Electricity distribution services
• Rural electric cooperative
• Member-owned utility
• Energy efficiency rebates
• Smart metering services

Headquarters

HQ city

Slayton

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B and B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Electricity Distribution: Nobles Cooperative Electric generates revenue through electricity distribution to over 6,800 residential and commercial members in Nobles and Murray Counties, Minnesota. As a cooperative, any margins (revenues exceeding costs) are typically returned to members through capital credits.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

Nobles Cooperative Electric distributes electricity to over 6,800 residential and commercial members across Nobles and Murray Counties in southwest Minnesota through owned poles, wires, and substations. As a member-owned cooperative, any excess margins are returned to members via capital credits, and the offering is augmented by the SmartHub web portal/mobile app for billing, payments, and energy-usage monitoring.

Product overview

Nobles Cooperative Electric is a member-owned rural electric cooperative providing electricity distribution to over 6,800 members in Nobles and Murray Counties, Minnesota. The cooperative's primary product is reliable electricity delivery, supported by a suite of digital and service offerings centered on the SmartHub web portal and mobile app, which provides account management, bill payment, energy usage monitoring, and outage notification. Additional offerings include renewable energy options, energy efficiency rebates (residential and commercial), capital credits, medical alert service, Operation Round Up community giving, and community events. The portfolio is organized around a core utility service supplemented by member-facing digital tools and community programs.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Electric Distribution Service Core electricity distribution service delivered to residential and commercial members across Nobles and Murray Counties through owned poles, wires, and substations. Includes 24/7 line crew outage response and regulated monthly billing.
• SmartHub Web portal and mobile application (iOS/Android) that lets members view and pay bills, set up Auto Pay and paperless billing, monitor energy usage with daily and hourly granularity, receive account alerts, and access outage notifications.
• Real-Time Outage Map Real-time, map-based tool that displays current power outages across the cooperative's service territory, allowing members and staff to view affected areas and restoration status.
• Load Control Status Status monitoring tool showing the current state of cooperative load-control devices, powered by GREnergy, used to manage energy demand and communicate load-control status to members.
• Rebates and Money-Saving Programs Residential and commercial rebate programs covering energy-efficient appliances, heating and cooling, lighting, water heating, smart thermostats, battery-powered yard tools, agricultural equipment, HVAC, motors and drives, and custom energy projects.
• Renewable Energy Options Renewable energy programs and member information for solar, wind, and other green energy solutions, including guidance on integrating distributed generation with the cooperative's grid.
• Medical Alert System Priority reconnection service for members with qualifying medical conditions who depend on electric-powered medical equipment.

Segments2 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature3 records

Partnerships

Two partnerships are on record, tiered core.

• Lismore Cooperative Telephone CompanycoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 July 2026Lismore Cooperative Telephone Company, established in 1907, is one of the nation's first telephone cooperatives. Both organizations are member-owned cooperatives serving southwest Minnesota. Nobles Cooperative Electric highlights Lismore as a 'Member Spotlight,' recognizing their 637-mile fiber optic broadband expansion project that will serve over 1,550 homes, farms, and businesses in Nobles and Murray Counties through 2027. The two cooperatives share the mission of investing in infrastructure and supporting local communities.
• Great River EnergycoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerGreat River Energy is a generation and transmission cooperative that provides power supply services to member cooperatives. Nobles Cooperative Electric's board member Lee Andrew York serves as the Nobles representative on the Great River Energy board, serving as board treasurer. This is a key power supply partnership for the cooperative.

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Brown County Rural Electrical Association (BCREA): Member-owned electric cooperative serving Brown County and adjacent areas in southern Minnesota. Comparable given similar cooperative structure, agricultural customer base, and Minnesota operating context.
• Connexus Energy: Minnesota member-owned electric cooperative distributing electricity across multiple counties in the Twin Cities metro and surrounding area. Highly comparable as a Minnesota-based distribution cooperative using a similar member-owned, capital-credits, and rebate-driven model.
• Freeborn-Mower Cooperative Services: Southern Minnesota member-owned electric cooperative. Comparable as a regional distribution cooperative with a similar rural/small-town member profile and identical capital-credits-based ownership model.
• Stearns Electric Association: Member-owned distribution electric cooperative serving central Minnesota. Direct peer given shared Minnesota operating geography, similar cooperative governance, and comparable residential/farm/commercial member mix.
• Runestone Electric Association: Member-owned electric cooperative serving west-central Minnesota. Comparable given overlapping Minnesota geography, similar rural service profile, and member-owned cooperative structure.
• Dakota Electric Association: Minnesota member-owned electric cooperative serving Dakota County and surrounding areas. Comparable as a Minnesota cooperative distribution utility with a similar mix of residential, commercial, and agricultural members.
• Goodhue County Cooperative Electric: Minnesota member-owned electric cooperative distributing electricity in Goodhue County. Comparable as a single-county-area rural distribution cooperative with similar member programs and governance structure.
• Lyon County Rural Electric Cooperative: Southwest Minnesota member-owned electric cooperative located in the same regional grid as Nobles. Highly comparable given overlapping southwest Minnesota geography and similar small rural distribution profile.

Broad incumbents

• Otter Tail Power Company: Investor-owned regulated electric utility serving parts of Minnesota, North Dakota, and South Dakota, including rural communities adjacent to Nobles' territory. Comparable as a rural-serving regulated electric utility in the upper Midwest, but materially larger and not cooperative-owned.
• Xcel Energy: Large investor-owned regulated electric and gas utility serving Minnesota and multiple other states. Comparable as a major electric distribution operator in the same state, but differs in scale, investor-owned (non-cooperative) ownership, and broad multi-state portfolio.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• YouTubeyoutube.com/channel/UCShd91uksvnLcErOPNAxCYw
• Facebookfacebook.com/noblescooperativeelectric
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/nobles-cooperative-electric

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

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 Nobles Cooperative Electric