Hydro adjusting rates for customers on July 1, 2018
June 29, 2018
Update:
July 1 electricity rate adjustments for Hydro’s isolated rural customers were approved by the Public Utilities Board on June 29, 2018. For more information or to learn why rates are changing, please visit the Electricity Rates section or click here.
Previous:
June 27, 2018 – Hydro adjusts rates every year on July 1 based on the price of oil used to generate electricity at the Holyrood Thermal Generating Station, the amount of electricity used by customers, and the annual amount of water we have for hydroelectric generation. This is a routine, annual adjustment called the Rate Stabilization Plan (RSP) and was created to ensure that customer’s rates reflect the actual cost of electricity generation from year to year. This July, rates will be implemented for the annual RSP adjustment as well as interim rates arising from Hydro’s General Rate Application (GRA).
Key Points
- We estimate that most of Hydro’s residential customers will see an increase of approximately 6.6% effective July 1, 2018. For the average homeowner on the island, this would be an increase of about $12 per month on their electricity bill (based on average consumption before taxes).
- The majority of this rate increase is related to costs that were deferred through the Rate Stabilization Plan in 2017. Although we expect to use less fuel in the future as we bring power to the island from Labrador or Nova Scotia, last year a large portion of the RSP adjustment was deferred in an effort to reduce the overall impact on customers at that time. These deferred costs account for 4.2% of the total increase.
- Interim rates account for approximately 2.6% of the total increase, and ensure that costs of operating the system can be recovered until the GRA process is complete and final rates are approved by the Public Utilities Board.
- These rates were approved by the Public Utilities Board for residential and commercial customers of Newfoundland Power, and will also apply to Hydro’s island interconnected and L’Anse Au Loup customers.
- Rates for isolated rural customers on both the island and in Labrador are not yet finalized, but we estimate that these customers will also see a 6.6% and 5.5% increase this year, respectively.
- Labrador Interconnected customers, whose power is supplied from the hydroelectric generating facility at Churchill Falls, will not see their rates change on July 1.
Quote
“We know that any rate increases are difficult. We have carefully examined costs and opportunities to reduce the overall impact of this rate change on our customers while ensuring we can deliver safe, reliable power across the province.”
Dawn Dalley, Vice President, Regulatory Affairs & Corporate Services