The BC Utilities Commission (BCUC) is a government agency that regulates energy utilities in BC.

Purpose

Energy businesses usually require a lot of capital, and can run more efficiently as a monopoly. It’s not economic to have two partially used gas lines running down the same street, for example. But providers of monopoly services have a lot of power over their customers; they can increase prices and provide poorer service, and have little incentive to innovate.

To get the economic benefits of a monopoly without the unpleasant side-effects, energy businesses are usually regulated. The BCUC performs this role in BC, using powers granted to it by the Utilities Commission Act. The BCUC preserves a utility’s monopoly by denying potential competitors the right to build facilities, and it also protects utility customers from abuse of those monopoly powers.

Since monopolies face no direct competition, there is little pressure on them to keep costs down. As a substitute for competition, the BCUC tries to make sure that utilities only charge customers for costs that are actually necessary to provide their monopoly service. This includes a return on invested capital, which the BCUC sets according to a “fair return standard.”