Farms.com Home   Ag Industry News

Time-of-use billing coming to hydro in B.C.

Time-of-use billing coming to hydro in B.C.

The TOU rates will come into effect in June

By Diego Flammini
Staff Writer
Farms.com

B.C. is bringing time-of-use (TOU) billing options to hydro customers next year.

On Dec. 12, the B.C. Utilities Commission (BCUC) approved BC Hydro’s application to offer optional TOU rates beginning in June 2024.

“This new rate plan provides you with a choice in how you're charged for electricity use, offers a way to save money on your bill if you can shift usage to lower price periods, and supports electric vehicle (EV) drivers who’ve made the switch to clean electricity,” BC Hydro says.

Average electricity Canada
Energyhub.org

TOU pricing in B.C. will work as follows:

  • Customers will receive a discount of 5 cents per kilowatt hour (kWh) for electricity used between 11pm and 7am.
  • Customers will pay 5 cents per kWh more for energy used between 4 and 9 pm.
  • No discount or surcharge applies for electricity consumption between 7am and 4pm, and from 9 to 11pm.

B.C.’s current hydro rates include a basic charge of 21.17 cents per day.

Then customers pay 9.75 cents per kWh for the first 1,350 kWh during a two-month billing period. Any electricity usage over 1,350 kWh is charged at a rate of 14.08 cents per kWh.

B.C. Hydro also offers a residential service rate for farms.

Farm rate bc hydro
BC Hydro

That includes a basic charge of 22.58 cents per day and an energy charge of 11.47 cents per kWh.

In Alberta, ATCO is testing TOU billing too.

Off-peak hours are considered between 4 and 9pm. All other hours are considered off-peak.


Trending Video

Governor Shapiro Visits Biodigester at Dickinson College Farm

Video: Governor Shapiro Visits Biodigester at Dickinson College Farm

Pennsylvania Governor Josh Shapiro visited the Dickinson College Farm to see the innovative biodigester project, which is turning farm and food waste into green energy. Food waste and manure are fed into the anerobic digester creating biogas, which can be used for cooking, heating and generating electricity. Dickinson College Farm's energy & livestock manager Matt Steiman says the new digester will process the manure from the neighbor’s 150 dairy cows plus two tons of food waste every day. The project will generate enough renewable energy to power the farm and will export additional energy to power 30 homes. The project will also reduce water pollution to local streams and the Chesapeake Bay.