Wednesday, May 12, 2010

Ontario's Power Trip: The 20% hydro grab

Posted: May 12, 2010, 12:14 AM by NP Editor

http://network.nationalpost.com/NP/blogs/fullcomment/archive/2010/05/11/ontario-s-power-trip-the-20-hydro-grab.aspx

Why electricity bills in Canada’s biggest province are set to soar
By Parker Gallant

Since I began the Ontario Power Trip series, I’ve received many requests from people asking me to tell them how much their electricity bill would go up. My first stab at an answer was to tell people it looked like about 20%.

Last week, Toronto Hydro told the National Post’s editorial board that Toronto area electricity bills will be rising by about 20%. Toronto, of course, is not alone here. Similar increases will hit all Ontario electricity consumers — and there are more to come.

Ontario electricity costs are made up of a long chain of fees, costs, debits, adjustments, charges, and other items too complicated to list and itemize. But let’s try. I decided to look at my Toronto Hydro bill and figure out how my power bill was likely to go up in the near future. The calculations get even more complicated because, in theory at least, beginning on May 1 Ontario consumers with Smart Meters will be under a new Time of Use (TOU) system.

My billing date was April 1, so I chose Aug. 1 for comparison purposes. That’s when Ontario’s new HST kicks in. Under the regulated price plan (RPP) my bill (assuming I use 2480 kwhs over two months) will increase by $61 (up 20.5%) for two months’ worth of power. Under the TOU plan, it will increase by $53 (up 17.9%). That means my electricity bill will jump $366 on an annual basis under the RPP and $318 under TOU.

That’s before we get to new rate increase applications in the hopper with the Ontario Energy Board, the regulator. As one example, Toronto Hydro has OEB approval to increase the “regulatory charge” to recover 2007 costs associated with “Shared Savings Mechanisms” (SSM), “Lost Revenue Adjustment Mechanism” (LRAM) and “Conservation & Demand Management” (CDM) that will add 0.49¢ a month to the bill.

Also awaiting OEB approval is another application from Toronto Hydro. It said the following: “In addition, the global economic downturn and other factors such as conservation have significantly eroded demand for power and energy.” As a result, Toronto Hydro “would be unable to recover its existing revenue requirement given the reduced load it is now experiencing.”

So the equation in the public-utility sector is: Demand down, rates up!

So why are they spending money to tell us to conserve, if the final result is to get us to pay more? They are asking for increases of 10.5% and 13.4%, based on usage under/over 800 kWh per month. Other utilities across Ontario have plans for similar rate increases.

In an effort to help Ontarians understand their electricity bills, the chart above may help. Every line on this chart requires an application to the OEB by the distributor, such as Hydro One, or a local distributor, such as Toronto Hydro. This chart doesn’t include IESO, the OPA, the OPG or other private-sector generators that also submit applications.

Readers will note that there’s a $17.36 bi-monthly fee to cover the “stranded debt” of the old Ontario Hydro. That’s a story in itself (see here).

Financial Post
Parker Gallant is a retired Canadian banker who began looking at his Ontario electricity bill and didn’t like what he was seeing.

54 comments:

  1. I can feel your pain...I received an $800 hydro bill a few months ago...with an average daily usage of 200KWH??? For the past 8 years, my usage has been from 20's to 30's KWH per day...the month after this crazy amount, my usage was 50KWH per day...still high. Then, the month after this, it's back to normal...even low sometimes it seems (not that I'm going to let Hydro know that).
    I got the same line "the meters are either working or their not...it's your fault". The first rep I spoke with made me feel like I was a liar...and almost refused to NOT forward me on to a supervisor. We had our meter tested...and alas, it works fine (surprise!).
    We check our meter daily now...but we are still stuck with this huge bill...7 times over our regular usage! It's crazy...we're considering going solar for sure!! That, or we'll have to train our dog (the only one home all day while we're at work) to stop using so much hydro...

    emondj77@hotmail.com

    ReplyDelete
  2. another H1 victimMay 14, 2010 at 8:03 AM

    I have some contacts in legal circles in Toronto, will be down there next week. I'll try to find out who is the best lawyer around for class action lawsuits.

    Reading your previous post, it struck me that what you are proposing is not really suitable for a single lawsuit.

    There seems to be good merit in suing on the 'Smart Meter' issue right away, and then filing another lawsuit on behalf of all Ontario taxpayers regarding the epic incompetence at Hydro One and the OEB etc.

    If your suit is too broad, it is also easier to get dismissed on a legal technicality.

    Also, we will need fundraising events, this will cost money - some crusading young attorney might take it on, but it will have costs attached, and I would fully expect the defendants to use every delaying tactic they can in hope we will simply fade away before the suit can be completed, which could take years.

    I'll e-mail you.

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  3. another H1 victim, I have a law firm that specializes in class action suits. They are eager to take this on, just need to get as much evidence as we can. Working on best how to do that now. They will take on all the risk, not a dime from us is needed. They will take a percent of the settlement. Once the suit is filed they will be taking out newspaper ads to bring forth more victims.

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  4. emondj77@hotmail.com, you need to get all your consumption bills on a spreadsheet and forward it to me ASAP. I have a mathematical criteria which can spot anomalies.

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Please feel free to leave a comment, especially if you wish to share your own horror story. If you wish to get involved in the class action suit please contact me directly at jrwakefield@mcswiz.com put Class Action Suit in the subject please.