The consumer groups bearing the brunt of ongoing power cost increases in Ontario, particularly since 2009, are small to medium sized businesses.
Consistently treated worse than other consumer classes, including picking up the slack as cost allocation rules are constantly getting fiddled with, no official agencies in Ontario’s power system are even tracking rate trends for small to medium-sized businesses. Not collecting information is a great strategy to cover up the story. Small to medium sized businesses as a group are very large consumers of electricity in Ontario but are almost totally unrepresented in the forums where the key decisions affecting electricity prices are being made. Some groups with medium-sized business as members, such as Canadian Manufacturers & Exporters, also represent utilities and larger industrial consumers with electricity interests that often conflict with the needs of medium-sized businesses.
Here is an analysis coauthored with Ross McKitrick reviewing a report from the Ontario Chamber of Commerce on how to start containing power cost escalation.
Our column is also linked on the Fraser Institute site here.
From the above link to OCC July 8, 2015 Blog:
‘Provincial Business Network Calls for Action on Rising Electricity Costs’
Report examines options the government should not take, such as:
Importing hydroelectric power from Quebec to replace nuclear.
Cancelling feed-in-tariffs (FIT) contracts.
Trying to have things both ways by the OCC?
Ontario wants to look good to the world with their energy policies leading into COP 21.
Nothing will be done until then unless back-room deals will be made?
Rising costs are actually putting businesses under. We are notoriously slow for changing policies, some interim solutions will be needed. We’re trying to help by creating a comparison platform for energy rates, specific to Ontario: http://bitly.com/1GGuokq , check it out, maybe it’ll really help some Ontarians
RR Star, Aug.31, 2015
‘Exelon mulls closure of unprofitable Quad Cities nuclear plant’
“Transmission lines near Quad Cities are not as extensive as those closer to Chicago and also move wind-generated electricity coming from Iowa, Minnesota and Nebraska. That sometimes threatens to overload the lines, leading to higher costs to transmit electricity through congestion …”
However, the decision has now been delayed until next year (2016). Follow the link.
http://www.rrstar.com/article/20150831/NEWS/150839943/1999/NEWS