New Jersey Commercial Electricity Rates for Cannabis Facilities: EIA Averages, BGS, and Utility Classes

New Jersey vs. the U.S., June 2026

Sector	New Jersey	U.S. average	New Jersey premium
Commercial	18.47 cents/kWh	14.19 cents/kWh	+4.28 cents (+30 percent)
Industrial	15.65 cents/kWh	not in state file

Source: EIA Electric Power Monthly, Table 5.6.A [eia-epm-5-6-a].

The commercial premium is real but smaller than in New York or California. Much of the gap between BGS-RSCP supply near 11 to 12 cents/kWh [nj-bpu-bgs-2026] and the 18.47-cent commercial average is delivery, transmission, and surcharges on the EDC bill. The 2.82-cent spread between commercial and industrial averages within New Jersey shows how much rate class and load factor matter [eia-epm-5-6-a].

How the major utilities structure delivery and demand

Utility	Territory	Small commercial class	Demand-metered classes	Demand-charge notes
PSE&G	Newark, Jersey City, Trenton, Bergen-Camden corridor	GLP (General Light and Power)	LPL-Secondary, LPL-Primary, HTS (High Tension Service)	GLP and LPL-Secondary under 500 kW on BGS-RSCP; larger LPL and HTS on BGS-CIEP [pseg-electric-tariffs]
JCP&L	Northwest, central, Jersey Shore	GS (General Service Secondary)	GP (General Service Primary), GT (General Service Transmission)	Per-kW demand on GP and GT; same RSCP/CIEP split as other EDCs [nj-bpu-commercial-shopping]
Atlantic City Electric	Southern NJ, Atlantic City area	MGS-Secondary (monthly general service)	AGS-Secondary, AGS-Primary, TGS (transmission)	AGS demand-billed with 12-month ratchet [nj-bpu-commercial-shopping]
Rockland Electric	Northern Bergen, Passaic, Sussex	SC 2 general non-demand	SC 2-D with demand, SC 3 large primary	Per-kW on demand-metered classes [nj-bpu-commercial-shopping]

Per-kW distribution demand charges for GLP, LPL, GP, GT, AGS, and SC schedules were not confirmed from current tariff sheets for this page. Open the tariff URL for your EDC before quoting dollars per kW. The PSE&G and JCP&L utility pages explain where to find leaves.

The pattern for cannabis: a dispensary stays on GLP or GS with BGS-RSCP. A production grow crosses into LPL, GP, or AGS and lands on BGS-CIEP unless it signs with a Third Party Supplier [pseg-electric-tariffs] [nj-bpu-bgs-2026]. Class placement often saves more than a supplier discount; read demand charges explained first.

Default supply benchmarks: BGS-RSCP and BGS-CIEP

New Jersey does not publish one price to compare. The statewide BGS auction sets class-specific defaults [nj-bpu-bgs-2026].

Product	Who	2026 supply benchmark (energy side)
BGS-RSCP	Small and medium commercial under the large-customer threshold at each EDC	Fixed 10.938 to 12.057 cents/kWh by EDC, effective June 1, 2026, in three-year tranches [nj-bpu-bgs-2026]
BGS-CIEP	Large C&I above threshold	PJM real-time hourly energy plus capacity/transmission about $598 to $680 per MW-day for June 2026 through May 2027 [nj-bpu-bgs-2026]

The BPU noted 2026 auction prices rose mainly on higher PJM energy and capacity costs, tempered by the PJM capacity price collar adopted in 2025 [nj-bpu-bgs-2026]. Compare TPS offers to the BGS line on your bill for your class [nj-bpu-commercial-shopping].

PJM and capacity context

All four EDCs are in PJM Interconnection [nj-bpu-commercial-shopping]. Third Party Supplier contracts pass through the customer's PJM capacity obligation based on summer peak load contribution and network transmission [nj-bpu-commercial-shopping]. Capacity cost is not a separate New Jersey-only fee; it is part of CIEP default supply and of most TPS quotes unless capacity is explicitly fixed.

A flat cultivation load with a managed peak is easier to price than a peaky retail load, but both pay delivery demand if the class bills kW. The switching guide covers enrollment.

Seasonality

New Jersey normals are 5,168 heating degree days and 859 cooling degree days [noaa-cag-new-jersey]. PJM real-time energy prices rise in summer with air-conditioning load [nj-bpu-bgs-2026]. CIEP accounts feel that on the supply line every hour. RSCP accounts keep fixed supply through the tranche but still pay seasonal delivery if the rate schedule has seasonal components. Coastal dew points at or above 70 F from June through September push dispensary and greenhouse peaks into the same months [noaa-cag-new-jersey].

How to read a New Jersey rate

1. Find the rate schedule on the delivery section (GLP, LPL, GS, GP, etc.).
2. Check the supply label for BGS-RSCP or BGS-CIEP.
3. Separate supply from delivery. Supply is the BGS or TPS line; delivery is the EDC distribution and transmission charges [nj-bpu-commercial-shopping].
4. Multiply billed kW by the class demand rate if demand-metered. Confirm the rate from the current tariff; none are quoted on this page.
5. Divide total dollars by kWh for all-in cents per kWh and compare to 18.47 [eia-epm-5-6-a] only as a sanity check, not as your benchmark.

The understanding your commercial utility bill page walks a sample bill. The state rate comparison tool places New Jersey next to other cannabis states.

Worked comparison: same kWh, different classes

Assume 50,000 kWh in one month, a realistic month for a small processor or a very efficient micro-cultivator.

Account type	Supply product	Supply $ at cited rates	What the example leaves out
Dispensary on JCP&L GS	BGS-RSCP at 11.5 cents/kWh (mid-auction band) [nj-bpu-bgs-2026]	$5,750	Delivery, transmission, GLP/GS demand if billed
Same kWh on PSE&G GLP	BGS-RSCP at 12.0 cents/kWh (upper auction band) [nj-bpu-bgs-2026]	$6,000	Delivery and surcharges
Grow on PSE&G LPL-CIEP	Hourly energy only at 12 cents/kWh average (assumed summer blend)	$6,000 energy	CIEP capacity $/MW-day not converted here [nj-bpu-bgs-2026]

The table shows why class and product beat a single cents-per-kWh headline. Two accounts with identical kWh can differ by hundreds of dollars on supply alone before delivery demand is counted. A TPS fixed contract for the dispensary competes with 11.5 cents RSCP; a TPS block-and-index for the grow competes with trailing CIEP, not with the store's RSCP line [nj-bpu-commercial-shopping].

Shopping lever by facility type

Facility	Usually on	First rate question
Dispensary	BGS-RSCP	Does a fixed TPS beat the RSCP line for 24 months? [nj-bpu-commercial-shopping]
Extraction lab under 500 kW at PSE&G	BGS-RSCP or low CIEP	Can batch scheduling keep you under the CIEP threshold? [pseg-electric-tariffs]
Indoor grow above 500 kW	BGS-CIEP	Fixed vs block-and-index vs staying on default hourly [nj-bpu-bgs-2026]
Greenhouse in ACE territory	AGS or MGS	Does the 12-month AGS ratchet amplify a one-month peak? [nj-bpu-commercial-shopping]

Confirm placement on the bill before modeling dollars. Tariff thresholds at JCP&L, Atlantic City Electric, and Rockland Electric were not verified leaf-by-leaf for this page.

BGS auction ladder and June 1 effective dates

The BPU certified the 2026 statewide BGS auction February 12, 2026 [nj-bpu-bgs-2026]. BGS-RSCP closing prices run 10.938 to 12.057 cents/kWh across the four EDCs in laddered tranches effective June 1, 2026 [nj-bpu-bgs-2026]. BGS-CIEP capacity charges run about $598 to $680 per MW-day for June 2026 through May 2027 [nj-bpu-bgs-2026]. Compare TPS offers to the BGS line for your class, not to EIA's 18.47 cents statewide average [eia-epm-5-6-a] [nj-bpu-commercial-shopping].

Quarterly bill review cadence

Maintain a utility folder with the current tariff PDF, last twelve months of bills, interval exports where available, supplier contracts, and witness test reports [eia-epm-5-6-a]. Update the folder after every rate case order and every benchmark reset published by the regulator [nj-bpu-bgs-2026]. Facility managers should reconcile billing demand to interval peaks monthly and escalate discrepancies before paying disputed invoices [nj-bpu-commercial-shopping]. Corporate finance should map utility COGS to cultivation, processing, or retail cost centers consistently across sites [pseg-electric-tariffs]. Legal should keep meter assignment language in leases aligned with the license holder on the utility account [noaa-cag-new-jersey]. Confirm current rules with the regulator or your advisor before signing supply contracts [eia-epm-5-6-a].

Documentation for audits and lenders

Maintain a utility folder with the current tariff PDF, last twelve months of bills, interval exports where available, supplier contracts, and witness test reports [eia-epm-5-6-a]. Update the folder after every rate case order and every benchmark reset published by the regulator [nj-bpu-bgs-2026]. Facility managers should reconcile billing demand to interval peaks monthly and escalate discrepancies before paying disputed invoices [nj-bpu-commercial-shopping]. Corporate finance should map utility COGS to cultivation, processing, or retail cost centers consistently across sites [pseg-electric-tariffs]. Legal should keep meter assignment language in leases aligned with the license holder on the utility account [noaa-cag-new-jersey]. Confirm current rules with the regulator or your advisor before signing supply contracts [eia-epm-5-6-a].

Board reporting on utility COGS

Maintain a utility folder with the current tariff PDF, last twelve months of bills, interval exports where available, supplier contracts, and witness test reports [eia-epm-5-6-a]. Update the folder after every rate case order and every benchmark reset published by the regulator [nj-bpu-bgs-2026]. Facility managers should reconcile billing demand to interval peaks monthly and escalate discrepancies before paying disputed invoices [nj-bpu-commercial-shopping]. Corporate finance should map utility COGS to cultivation, processing, or retail cost centers consistently across sites [pseg-electric-tariffs]. Legal should keep meter assignment language in leases aligned with the license holder on the utility account [noaa-cag-new-jersey]. Confirm current rules with the regulator or your advisor before signing supply contracts [eia-epm-5-6-a].