Rising Rural Hydro Rates Hurt Small Business

Discrepancy in hydro rates across the country are punishing small business, especially those located in designated rural areas with exorbitant delivery charges. This higher delivery rate puts businesses on an unlevel playing field and it’s this that needs to stop.

The Ontario government continues to subsidize large industrial businesses to reduce their costs while ignoring small institutions. To facilitate change, we must contact our local MPPs and register our concerns with these costs.

What follows is a letter that one of our retailers submitted to the Minister of Energy (Glenn Thibeault). Do feel free to send correspondence of your own. We’re a powerful voice, but in order to be heard we must speak up.

Dear Mr. Thibeault:

I am writing you to advise of an unfair energy pricing situation which exists in the province. Specifically, it is the punishing rates charged by Hydro One to what it classifies as rural customers. I have prepared a chart below which shows a monthly invoice from 2 stores that we operate; one in Kemptville, Ontario and the other in Ottawa. Both stores use approximately 18,500 KwH for the month (July in this case) and both have similar time of use patterns.

Hydro Letter

The Hydro One store in Kemptville was an eye-watering 30.6% higher than my store in Ottawa (same month, same usage). Even more galling is that I can show you an invoice from one of my Gatineau Quebec stores where the cost was only $1,700.00 (same month, roughly 18,500 Kwh).

These rural rates charged by Hydro One are absolutely punishing and I know that my company will think long and hard about making further investments in Ontario where rural rates apply. And as sad as it is for the senior representative of an Ottawa owned and operated company to say, the Province of Quebec has become our best option for making an investment in new stores.

How are rural towns in Ontario serviced by Hydro One going to be able to attract and keep businesses (and the jobs that go with them) if they can’t justify the energy costs?

Sincerely,

A concerned Vice-President and General Manager