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Get a Free QuoteHolden isn't on National Grid or Eversource — it runs its own municipal light plant, and the bill shows it. The all-in residential rate sits at roughly a thirdof what the big investor-owned utilities charge, on top of HMLD's own heat pump, weatherization, and solar programs.
Rates and programs verified July 2026 against HMLD's filed tariffs and its rebate program. Federal 25D solar and 25C heat-pump tax credits EXPIRED Dec 31, 2025.
Holden Municipal Light Department (HMLD) charges a $5.00 monthly customer charge plus a $0.0592-per-kWh energy charge, a $0.0005-per-kWh Renewable Energy Trust charge, and a variable Power Cost Adjustment (MDPU #135, effective May 1, 2025). All-in, a typical Holden home pays roughly 14 cents per kWh — about a third of National Grid or Eversource. HMLD also runs its own heat pump, weatherization, and solar net-metering programs because, as a municipal light plant, it is not part of Mass Save.
A municipal light plant owns its wires and buys power at cost — no investor margin, no competitive-supply markup. Here is the current all-in residential rate at HMLD next to the two big Massachusetts investor-owned utilities, straight from our canonical utility data.
Holden Municipal Light
$0.14/kWh
all-in bundled residential
National Grid
$0.39/kWh (as of Feb 2026)
neighboring IOU territory
Eversource
$0.359/kWh (as of Feb 2026)
MA investor-owned
Drag your typical monthly usage to see the same kilowatt-hours billed at each utility's current rate.
At 600 kWh/month, a Holden home pays roughly $89 where the same usage on National Grid runs about $234 — about $1,740 a year less, before any solar or efficiency rebates.
Estimate only. HMLD's all-in figure moves with the monthly Power Cost Adjustment; IOU figures are the current bundled residential rate. Your actual bill depends on usage, the prompt-payment discount, and any low-income or farm discount.
HMLD's all-in figure reflects the fixed tariff components (customer charge $5.00/mo, energy charge $0.0592 per kWh, Renewable Energy Trust $0.0005 per kWh) plus the variable Power Cost Adjustment. Investor-owned rates are the current bundled residential rate as of the dates shown.
Every charge on your Holden bill traces to a filed tariff. The residential schedule (MDPU #135, effective May 1, 2025) is refreshingly simple — one flat customer charge, one flat energy charge, a tiny renewable-trust line, and the variable Power Cost Adjustment that carries HMLD's wholesale power cost. There are no supply-vs-delivery halves and no usage tiers to decode.
| Bill line | Amount | What it is |
|---|---|---|
| Customer charge | $5.00 per month | Flat monthly service charge. Waived for verified low-income customers. |
| Energy charge | $0.0592 per kWh | The distribution/energy component — the same for every kWh, no tiers or blocks. |
| Power Cost Adjustment (PCA) | Variable | HMLD's wholesale power cost, passed through and recalculated periodically. This is the piece that moves your all-in rate up or down. |
| Renewable Energy Trust | $0.0005 per kWh | Massachusetts Technology Collaborative / Renewable Energy Trust charge. Not subject to the prompt-payment discount. |
| Energy Conservation Service | As billed | Funds HMLD's efficiency and rebate programs. Not subject to the prompt-payment discount. |
Source: HMLD Residential Service Rate, MDPU #135, filed April 24, 2025, effective May 1, 2025. Commercial accounts fall under the General Service Rate (MDPU #137): $75.00 customer charge, $9.62 per kW demand charge, and a $0.0358-per-kWh energy charge.
Pay within 15 days of the bill date, with no balance in arrears, and the cost-of-service charges are discounted 15%. This is a real, published line in the tariff — most Holden customers who pay on time get it automatically.
The $5.00 customer charge is waived for customers who verify receipt of a means-tested benefit or LIHEAP eligibility (generally up to 200% of the federal poverty level). You re-certify annually.
Accounts certified through the Massachusetts Department of Agricultural Resources receive an additional 10% discount on top of the standard rate.
Because Holden is a municipal light plant, its rebates come from HMLD's own program — administered by Energy New England — not from Mass Save. Heat pumps lead the stack, with a weatherization, water-heater, and appliance tail behind them.
$500 / ton
Cap 3 tons ($1,500 max)
Must be ENERGY STAR Cold Climate certified and on the qualified product list. The rebate will not exceed 50% of the job cost.
$750 / ton
Cap 3 tons ($2,250 max)
The highest per-ton heat pump rebate HMLD offers. Same certification requirement and the same 50%-of-job-cost limit as air-source.
$500
Per eligible unit
A flat rebate for a qualifying heat pump water heater — one of the cheapest ways to cut an electric or oil water-heating bill.
Install between January 1 and December 31, 2026, and submit your application by January 31, 2027. Weatherization rebates require a home energy assessment first. Each eligible appliance rebate is available once per customer every three years. The program is administered by Energy New England — schedule an assessment at 888-772-4242 or email rebates@ene.org.
The federal residential heat-pump credit (Section 25C) and solar credit (Section 25D) both expired December 31, 2025, and the EV-charger credit (Section 30C) expired June 30, 2026. HMLD's rebates are the incentive — there is no federal residential tax credit to add.
Not on the electric side. Mass Save is funded by an energy-efficiency surcharge on the bills of the investor-owned utilities — Eversource, National Grid, and Unitil. Holden Municipal Light customers don't pay that surcharge, so they're not eligible for Mass Save electric rebates or the 0% Mass Save HEAT Loan. HMLD's own program fills that role instead.
HMLD's rebate program through Energy New England, its net-metering credits, and its low electric rate. For most Holden homes this is the entire incentive picture — there is no Mass Save electric layer underneath it.
Natural gas service is limited in Holden — most homes heat with oil or propane. If your home does have natural gas from an investor-owned gas utility, that gas utility may run its own separate Mass Save gas-side offers, which are independent of HMLD's electric program.
Municipal light plants set their own solar rules, and HMLD is no exception. Its Net Metering Rate (MDPU #134) governs how a rooftop or ground-mount array is credited — and there are a few Holden-specific details worth knowing before you design a system.
When your solar array generates more than you use in a billing period, HMLD credits the excess to your account as a monetary credit based on your class of service — not a lower wholesale rate.
For the billing period ending in March each year (or when service ends), any remaining credit balance can be returned to you by check on request. The customer charge, net-metering distribution charge, and minimum charge still apply.
A $2.00 per kW-per-month charge applies, multiplied by the DC capacity of the system. New net-metering customers pay it from interconnection; existing customers begin paying five years after their Permission to Operate letter.
You complete and sign HMLD's Interconnection Application & Agreement and pay the applicable application, meter, and electrical-permitting fees. Solar in Holden is interconnected through the municipal department, not the state IOU process.
One design note on RECs. If HMLD or the Commonwealth funds a grant or rebate for your system, HMLD keeps the renewable-energy certificates it produces. If you fund the system yourself with no HMLD or state grant, you keep the RECs and their environmental attributes. Because Holden's retail rate is already low, most owners size solar to offset their own usage rather than to bank large export credits.
Holden is close to an ideal heat-pump town, and the reason is the electric rate. A heat pump's operating cost is basically its electricity use times your per-kWh price — and HMLD's is a fraction of the investor-owned utilities'. Add that most Holden homes burn oil or propane (natural gas is limited here), and a cold-climate heat pump running on roughly 14-cent electricity usually wins on operating cost against delivered fuel.
Every kilowatt-hour a heat pump draws costs about a third of what it would on National Grid or Eversource. That is the single biggest lever on lifetime operating cost.
With little natural gas in town, the incumbent is delivered oil or propane. A cold-climate heat pump displaces that fuel and its price volatility with cheap Holden electricity.
Up to $1,500 (air-source) or $2,250 (ground-source) from HMLD, capped at 50% of the job. Pair it with the low rate and the payback math is among the best in Massachusetts.
We design to HMLD's net-metering and interconnection rules and sequence the rebate paperwork so nothing slips.
Under the current residential tariff (MDPU #135, effective May 1, 2025), Holden Municipal Light Department charges a $5.00 monthly customer charge plus a $0.0592-per-kWh energy charge, a $0.0005-per-kWh Renewable Energy Trust charge, and a variable Power Cost Adjustment that reflects HMLD's wholesale power cost. Bundled together, a typical Holden home pays roughly 14 cents per kWh all-in — about a third of what National Grid or Eversource residential customers pay. HMLD also offers a 15% discount when you pay within 15 days of the bill date.
Every Massachusetts utility rate, side by side — never a state average.
How solar works across MA municipal light plants.
A neighboring MLP's heat-pump program, up to $10,000.
Reading's high-per-ton municipal program.
Concord's top $/ton and time-of-use rate.
The statewide IOU program — for reference, not for HMLD customers.
What a cold-climate heat pump actually costs to install.
The full statewide rebate picture for IOU customers.
We know HMLD's net-metering, interconnection, and rebate rules — and we design to Holden's low electric rate so the savings math actually lands. Free, no-pressure quote.
