Category: General commentary

BC Hydro needs to acquire more electricity than it previously thought, and it won’t be available soon enough. Introduction BC Hydro, the provincially owned electrical utility, needs more electricity. In 2024, with no new generation of its own planned, it sought bids from the private sector to build new, clean generation (2024 Call for Power).…

The government has admitted it’s not on track to meet its 2030 greenhouse gas emissions reduction target. It should stop trying, and focus instead on more realistic, longer-term goals. Introduction BC’s Climate Change Accountability Act (Act) sets out provincial greenhouse gas (GHG) emission reduction targets for each decade up to 2050, calculated from a 2007…

The Minister of Energy promised BC Hydro’s new clean energy projects would have BCUC oversight. A decades-old ministerial exemption order makes that a hollow promise. Introduction I’m sure readers of Just and Reasonable are well aware of BC Hydro’s impending energy deficit. As early as 2029 BC Hydro will need more electricity than it can…

A new $50 million stop-gap measure will leave the system at capacity again by 2029. The proposal rejected by the BC Utilities Commission (BCUC) in 2023 is looking more and more like a missed opportunity. Introduction FortisBC Energy Inc. (FEI), BC’s largest gas distribution utility, has a problem. Its pipeline serving the Okanagan is close…

BC Hydro will defer over a billion dollars of costs in the next three years without the independent approval of the BCUC. This could cause the Auditor General to qualify the provincial accounts (again). The importance of fair public accounts Most public companies record their costs in the year the costs are incurred. That way,…

The claim that BC Hydro bills will increase by an “average” of 3.75 percent contains enough spin to make you dizzy. In fact, almost 80 percent of BC Hydro residential customers may experience bill increases higher than 3.75 percent on April 1. Low-income customers may fare the worst. Introduction Last week the BC government announced…

The Utilities Commission Act prevents the government from overriding a BCUC decision. It may have done just that. Introduction The BC government recently issued an Order to the BC Utilities Commission (BCUC), the most widely-publicized effect of which was to set the next two years’ rates for BC Hydro, the provincially-owned electric utility, a job…

In bypassing the regulator, the government has set rates for BC Hydro that are probably too low. This will create big problems down the road, just like it did last time. Introduction On Monday, the BC government announced that rates for BC Hydro, the provincially-owned electric utility, would rise by an average of 3.75 percent…

BC Hydro’s third quarter financial results are out. The promise of limiting bill increases to 2.3 percent for the next four years is looking distinctly shaky. Editor’s note: Since this article was published, the government has announced that BC Hydro’s rates will increase an average of 3.75 percent annually for two years. This article was…

The BC Utilities Commission has deregulated many thermal energy systems and strengthened consumer protection. It could have gone a bit further, though. Introduction The BC Utilities Commission (BCUC) regulates energy utilities in BC, albeit with varying degrees of enthusiasm these days. The Utilities Commission Act has a broad definition of what must be regulated, and…