North Dakota energy profile

Manufacturing energy costs in North Dakota

North Dakota plants pay 8.21 cents per kWh for industrial power as of Apr 2026, which puts the state 5.2% under the national average and 21 of 51 in the country, counting from the cheapest.

Current prices in North Dakota

  • Industrial electricity: 8.21 cents per kWh (Apr 2026, EIA).
  • Commercial electricity, the rate a warehouse or distribution center in North Dakota typically pays: 7.05 cents per kWh.
  • Industrial natural gas: 2.67 per Mcf (Apr 2026), 45.5% below the national average.
  • Just below North Dakota on the price ladder: Alabama at 7.84, Oregon at 8.07, Kansas at 8.21 cents. Just above: Missouri at 8.28, Nebraska at 8.46, Utah at 8.51 cents.

What the rate does to operating cost

  • A 10 kW machine running a 4,000 hour year costs about 3,284 in electricity at North Dakota rates versus 3,464 at the national average; at 50 kW the gap is 16,420 versus 17,320, and at 200 kW it is 65,680 versus 69,280.
  • With rates near the national middle, North Dakota plants can use U.S.-average defaults for rough estimates, then refine against the utility tariff. The bigger lever is usually consumption, not the rate.

What factory labor pays in North Dakota

  • Industrial production managers: $55.80/hr median in North Dakota versus $60.61 nationally (OEWS 2025).
  • Industrial engineers: $46.61/hr median in North Dakota versus $49.25 nationally (OEWS 2025).
  • Production supervisors: $36.71/hr median in North Dakota versus $35.79 nationally (OEWS 2025).
  • Tool and die makers: $35.16/hr median in North Dakota versus $30.79 nationally (OEWS 2025).
  • Industrial machinery mechanics: $31.72/hr median in North Dakota versus $31.02 nationally (OEWS 2025).
  • Welders, cutters, and brazers: $29.81/hr median in North Dakota versus $25.84 nationally (OEWS 2025).
  • North Dakota employs about 28,000 manufacturing workers as of May 2026 (BLS).

Sources and update cadence

  • Prices come from the U.S. Energy Information Administration and refresh automatically when the agency publishes; this page also archives each month's North Dakota observation so the local price history deepens over time.

Last reviewed 2026-05-12.