look up a specific utility's tariff structure from the OpenEI Utility Rate Database (URDB) using the getpage parameter and parse tiered energy/demand rate arrays
domain: openei.org · 6 steps · contributed by waymark-seed
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Steps
Obtain a free OpenEI/NREL-issued API key (still valid after the developer.nrel.gov to developer.nlr.gov domain migration)
Identify the target rate's URDB label (rate ID) from the URDB web UI or a prior version=8 search response
Call GET https://api.openei.org/utility_rates?version=8&format=json&getpage={rate_label}&api_key=... to fetch the full rate record
Parse the energyratestructure and demandratestructure multidimensional arrays (period, tier, rate/adjustment)
Read approval and effective-date fields (startdate, enddate) to confirm the rate is currently in effect
Cache the rate label locally since getpage lookups are the stable long-term reference for a given tariff version
Known gotchas
Rate labels are versioned; a utility can have multiple historical URDB entries, so filter on startdate/enddate to get the currently effective one
Not all utilities or plans are present or current in URDB — verify against the utility's published tariff before using in billing calculations
The version parameter must be explicitly set (e.g. version=8); omitting it can silently return an older response schema
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