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Minnesota man reports massive electric bill
An Xcel Energy customer in Lakeville says he’s been charged tens of thousands of dollars for electricity that he has not used. FOX 9’s Soyoung Kim has the exclusive story.
LAKEVILLE, Minn. (FOX 9) - An Xcel Energy customer in Lakeville says he is being billed thousands of dollars for power he did not use, and the energy company said they plan to investigate further.
Energy bill surges past $61k
The backstory:
Terry Zeien has had a hangar at Airlake Airport in Lakeville for more than three decades.
"We built it between me and two other people, and we each own our own division," said Zeien.
He says his electricity bill for the three sections in the building had been consistent for years.
"I’ve had the building for 35 years. The bill has never been over $40 a month in that period," said Zeien.
However, last summer, he says he noticed a spike in his Xcel Energy account balance after a digital meter was installed.
"[May 26, 2025] that was our first spike, and it went from zero to $3,000," said Zeien.
Zeien sent FOX 9 his statements starting in May 2025, and he was billed for thousands of dollars for many of the months in the past year. Some months, a monthly charge was upwards of $10,000. His account balance, as of a statement dated Sept. 2, shows $61,445.21.
Looking for answers
What they're saying:
Zeien says he has not been able to get any clear answers from Xcel about the sudden jump in his bill.
"Every time I get a bill, I would call Xcel Energy, talk to them, the number they give you. Unfortunately, the people that try to help you are only looking at a computer screen," said Zeien. "It’s been frustrating. I think I’ve called nine times. They promised they would have a supervisor call every time."
Zeien says earlier this year, a team from Xcel visited to conduct an audit.
"They couldn’t find anything wrong. They couldn’t find any outside usage. They couldn’t find anybody stealing power. So, they had no clue what to tell me," said Zeien.
He explained that the three sections in his building are cold-storage hangars that do not use much power.
"Total lights in the whole building is 23. The only other thing we use once in a while is an air compressor to pump up the tires in the airplanes in the wintertime mostly," said Zeien.
Zeien adds that a few times every winter they also use a heater to warm up the motor. He says he thinks there has been a mix-up but has not been able to get any answers from Xcel over the last year.
"My theory is that Xcel Energy has a port. So, all these hangars shoot to a port, and the port or the meter is bad," said Zeien.
He has also consulted an outside expert about the usage he was being billed for. For example, according to one of his recent monthly statements, he was charged based on electricity service for using 36,754 kWh.
"I had master electricians out here. They said your building would burn down first," said Zeien. "The building would burn down if you used that much energy. The panel would not handle it."
Zeien says he is sharing his story not only because he wants to resolve his outstanding balance, but also for others who might be dealing with a similar ordeal.
"I’m thinking of all these people out there that are getting bills they shouldn’t owe," said Zeien.
Xcel Energy response
The other side:
A spokesperson for Xcel sent this statement about the customer’s account.
"We have been taking steps to resolve the issue with this customer’s account since January. Our teams have been to the site multiple times and verified the meter was properly connected at the property, had not been tampered with and serves multiple buildings in Lakeville (three airplane hangars), which may be a factor in the high energy use. Our billing department reviewed the customer’s account and verified this is not a billing issue."
Zeien said Xcel had threatened to cut off power due to his outstanding bill. He had removed the meter in mid-August, which an Xcel crew replaced with another digital meter shortly after.
In Xcel’s latest response to the situation, a spokesperson sent the following statement: "While it is uncommon to see such large amounts of energy use at smaller properties, we have seen customers in the past reach or exceed this level of usage. We are working with the customer now to arrange a time to pick up the removed meter so we can investigate it further and move the issue toward resolution."
What's next:
Zeien says his wife has continued to submit payments of $30 a month even as the account balance continues to grow.
A Sept. 2 letter from Xcel Energy Billing Services that was shared with FOX 9 said, "We have determined you were incorrectly billed for a number of months."
For one of the recent months of electricity usage, the account was credited roughly $10,000 but rebilled a slightly lower amount of roughly $8,000. A statement dated Sept. 2 showed his latest account balance is still over $60,000.
Zeien said he is working with an attorney to file a complaint with the Public Utilities Commission.
The Source: This report uses information from Terry Zeien and Xcel Energy.