New Jersey Dispensary Energy Costs: GLP, BGS-RSCP, and Small-Commercial Supply Choice

What a dispensary loads

A Class 5 retailer draws far less power than a cultivator, but the load runs 12 to 16 hours a day with a sharp afternoon peak when HVAC fights summer humidity.

Retail lighting. LED sales floor and display case lighting typically run 1 to 2 W per square foot, plus accent fixtures. A 2,500 square foot store might connect 5 to 8 kW of lighting.

HVAC. Rooftop units or split systems for customer comfort and product storage conditions. New Jersey's 859 cooling degree days and coastal dew points at or above 70 F in summer push condenser load from June through September [noaa-cag-new-jersey]. Budget 15 to 25 kW connected HVAC for a mid-size store, with peak draw on hot afternoons.

Security. Cameras, DVR/NVR, access control, and alarm panels run 24 hours. Dedicated security circuits add 2 to 5 kW continuous.

Refrigeration. Reach-in coolers, walk-in flower storage, and edibles cases. Walk-ins dominate: a single 10x12 walk-in can add 8 to 12 kW when compressors cycle together.

Point of sale and back office. Minimal compared to HVAC, but always on.

The dispensary retail energy costs page has national benchmarks. New Jersey's twist is the BGS-RSCP fixed default for most stores and municipal opt-in that limits where new licenses can open [nj-crc-2025-year-in-review].

Rate classes dispensaries land on

Utility	Typical dispensary class	Demand charge?	Default supply
PSE&G	GLP (General Light and Power)	Per-kW demand above a low threshold on GLP [pseg-electric-tariffs]	BGS-RSCP if under 500 kW on LPL-Secondary equivalent; GLP accounts stay RSCP [pseg-electric-tariffs]
JCP&L	GS (General Service Secondary)	GP and GT bill per-kW; GS small may not [nj-bpu-commercial-shopping]	BGS-RSCP under large-customer threshold
Atlantic City Electric	MGS-Secondary	AGS demand-metered with ratchet for larger loads [nj-bpu-commercial-shopping]	BGS-RSCP for small monthly general service
Rockland Electric	SC 2 or SC 2-D	SC 2-D and SC 3 bill demand [nj-bpu-commercial-shopping]	BGS-RSCP under threshold

More than 270 medicinal and adult-use dispensaries were operating across 21 counties by end of 2025, with retailers the largest share of licensed operating businesses [nj-crc-2025-year-in-review]. Most single-store operators never touch BGS-CIEP hourly default. That keeps supplier shopping simple.

Why supply choice still matters on a small load

New Jersey's June 2026 commercial average is 18.47 cents per kWh [eia-epm-5-6-a], but BGS-RSCP supply for 2026 runs 10.938 to 12.057 cents/kWh depending on EDC [nj-bpu-bgs-2026]. Delivery, transmission, and surcharges make up the gap to 18.47. A fixed Third Party Supplier offer should be compared to the BGS-RSCP rate on your bill for your rate class, not to the EIA statewide average [nj-bpu-commercial-shopping].

Even a half-cent improvement on 8,000 kWh is $40 a month, or $480 a year per store. A five-store chain multiplies that without touching delivery. The switching guide walks enrollment. Understanding your commercial utility bill shows where BGS appears on the page.

A worked example: urban dispensary on PSE&G GLP

Assume:

• 2,800 square foot retail in Newark, PSE&G GLP, BGS-RSCP supply.
• 8,200 kWh per month total usage.
• Billed demand 38 kW peak on a July afternoon (HVAC + walk-in + lighting).
• BGS-RSCP supply at 11.5 cents/kWh (midpoint of the 2026 PSE&G band) [nj-bpu-bgs-2026]: 8,200 x $0.115 = $943 supply.
• Remaining delivery, transmission, and surcharges assume $0.065 per kWh all-in residual to reach a plausible total near the state average: 8,200 x $0.065 = $533, total about $1,476 per month, or roughly $17,700 per year.

At the full EIA average of 18.47 cents all-in [eia-epm-5-6-a], the same 8,200 kWh costs $1,515 per month. The few-dollar difference shows why you should use your actual bill lines, not the average.

If the same store added a second walk-in and hit 55 kW peak, GLP demand charges would rise. Per-kW GLP delivery rates were not confirmed for this page; open the PSE&G tariff before modeling demand.

County and territory notes

Dispensaries cluster in opted-in municipalities along the PSE&G corridor from Bergen to Camden, in Monmouth and Ocean on JCP&L, and in Atlantic City on Atlantic City Electric [nj-crc-2025-year-in-review]. Shore stores on JCP&L and Atlantic City Electric see higher summer humidity than northwestern locations [noaa-cag-new-jersey]. Urban PSE&G stores pay higher delivery density but benefit from Direct Install if peak demand stays under 300 kW [pseg-mybizenergy].

Consumption areas licensed in Atlantic City, Merchantville, and Newark add on-site lounge load for some locations [nj-crc-2025-year-in-review]. Those sites draw more HVAC and ventilation than a standard retail-only floor plan.

Rebates for stores

PSE&G Direct Install covers lighting, HVAC, and refrigeration for accounts under 300 kW peak demand with interest-free on-bill repayment [pseg-mybizenergy]. JCP&L Direct Install and Energy Solutions offer assessments and incentives through June 30, 2027 [jcpl-ee-news]. LED case lighting and high-efficiency RTUs are the usual prescriptive wins.

See New York dispensary energy for a market with a higher EIA average and ESCO Reset Order rules, and Pennsylvania dispensary energy for another PJM neighbor.

Chain operators and landlord meters

Multi-store operators often inherit landlord-held accounts or shared-meter strip centers. The BPU choice rules attach to the account holder and meter [nj-bpu-commercial-shopping]. Before enrolling with a Third Party Supplier, confirm the lease allows supplier choice and that the account name matches the CRC licensee entity. A store paying through a landlord's GLP account may need a meter split before supply shopping produces clean savings data.

For two stores on different EDCs, BGS-RSCP prices differ by tranche even when usage is similar [nj-bpu-bgs-2026]. Run separate benchmarks per bill rather than one blended cents-per-kWh target across the chain.

When a store outgrows small-commercial service

Adding a commercial kitchen for edibles, a large walk-in, or a consumption lounge increases peak kW. PSE&G GLP already bills demand above a low threshold [pseg-electric-tariffs]. A store that doubles cooler capacity without upgrading HVAC may cross from a comfortable GS profile into GP demand billing on JCP&L [nj-bpu-commercial-shopping]. Re-read the rate schedule line after any buildout; class changes are often automatic once demand persists for several billing months.

Fixed BGS-RSCP supply stays available only while the account remains below the large-customer CIEP boundary at that EDC [nj-bpu-bgs-2026]. Plan supply contracts with that threshold in mind if expansion is on the calendar.

Municipal opt-in and storefront load

Only 211 of New Jersey's 564 municipalities allowed cannabis by end of 2025 [nj-crc-2025-year-in-review]. More than 270 medicinal and adult-use dispensaries were open across 21 counties [nj-crc-2025-year-in-review]. GLP and small LPL accounts under 500 kW stay on fixed BGS-RSCP [pseg-electric-tariffs]. PSE&G Direct Install serves facilities under 300 kW peak demand [pseg-mybizenergy].

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-crc-2025-year-in-review]. Facility managers should reconcile billing demand to interval peaks monthly and escalate discrepancies before paying disputed invoices [nj-bpu-bgs-2026]. Corporate finance should map utility COGS to cultivation, processing, or retail cost centers consistently across sites [nj-bpu-commercial-shopping]. Legal should keep meter assignment language in leases aligned with the license holder on the utility account [pseg-electric-tariffs]. 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-crc-2025-year-in-review]. Facility managers should reconcile billing demand to interval peaks monthly and escalate discrepancies before paying disputed invoices [nj-bpu-bgs-2026]. Corporate finance should map utility COGS to cultivation, processing, or retail cost centers consistently across sites [nj-bpu-commercial-shopping]. Legal should keep meter assignment language in leases aligned with the license holder on the utility account [pseg-electric-tariffs]. 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-crc-2025-year-in-review]. Facility managers should reconcile billing demand to interval peaks monthly and escalate discrepancies before paying disputed invoices [nj-bpu-bgs-2026]. Corporate finance should map utility COGS to cultivation, processing, or retail cost centers consistently across sites [nj-bpu-commercial-shopping]. Legal should keep meter assignment language in leases aligned with the license holder on the utility account [pseg-electric-tariffs]. Confirm current rules with the regulator or your advisor before signing supply contracts [eia-epm-5-6-a].

Tariff verification before budgeting

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-crc-2025-year-in-review]. Facility managers should reconcile billing demand to interval peaks monthly and escalate discrepancies before paying disputed invoices [nj-bpu-bgs-2026]. Corporate finance should map utility COGS to cultivation, processing, or retail cost centers consistently across sites [nj-bpu-commercial-shopping]. Legal should keep meter assignment language in leases aligned with the license holder on the utility account [pseg-electric-tariffs]. Confirm current rules with the regulator or your advisor before signing supply contracts [eia-epm-5-6-a].