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Alberta

The electricity price cap in Alberta is gone. What now?

Published

5 years ago

5 minute read

How the electricity price cap removal will affect Alberta utility bills (Photo by Helloquence on Unsplash)

Many Albertans have been reading the news about higher regulated electricity rates in December, after the price cap on energy rates was scrapped by the province. Even though this was announced by the Government of Alberta in late October, as part of the new budget, people only started to hear more about it on November 30. That was when the regulated energy providers announced their new power rates; this time, without a cap on prices. 

The program was created by the NDP government in 2017 to cap energy rates for residential and small business consumers. Regulated rate (RRO) consumers wouldn’t pay more than 6.8 cents per kWh, meaning that any costs above that threshold were paid by the province. The main goal behind the cap was to protect consumers from rate spikes and, consequently, financial uncertainty. 

In order to predict how your energy bills (and your wallet) could be impacted by this change, we need to take a look at historical prices, future market trends and what prices would’ve been this past year without the cap. 

How the 6.8 cents/kWh price cap worked

Regulated electricity rates in Alberta change every month. Although the prices need to be approved by the Alberta Utilities Commission (AUC), they can be affected by multiple factors, including politics, natural disasters, economic reasons and more. 

In the past 10 years, electricity rates in Alberta went as high as 15.06 cents/kWh and as low as 2.88 cents/kWh. The cap provided protection for Albertans as the government subsidized any prices above 6.8 cents/kWh. 

The effects of the electricity price cap in Calgary in 2019

According to the Utilities Consumer Advocate (UCA), regulated electricity rates in the Calgary area (ENMAX) went above the 6.8 cents/kWh during most months of 2019, except for March, April, May and June. 

  • January: 7.727 cents/kWh
  • February: 7.009 cents/kWh
  • March: 5.914 cents/kWh
  • April: 6.067 cents/kWh
  • May: 6.390 cents/kWh
  • June: 6.391 cents/kWh 
  • July: 8.434 cents/kWh
  • August: 8.805 cents/kWh
  • September: 7.590 cents/kWh
  • October: 6.736 cents/kWh* 
  • November: 7.399 cents/kWh
  • December: 7.320 cents/kWh 
*According to the UCA, prices still reached the price cap in October, although they were officially 6.736 cents/kWh. 

This means the average price would’ve been approximately 7.15 cents/kWh, which makes quite a difference in energy bill terms, considering that the average household in Canada consumes around 1,000 kWh per month. After an entire year of high electricity rates, this difference looks even larger. 

The effects of the electricity price cap in Edmonton in 2019

In the Edmonton region (EPCOR), the difference between what consumers paid and what they would’ve paid without the cap is even more noticeable. According to the UCA, regulated prices went above the 6.8 cents threshold in all months except for March. 

Without the cap, the average price per kWh in the Edmonton area in 2019 would’ve been 7.84 cents/kWh. 

  • January: 7.733 cents/kWh
  • February: 7.189 cents/kWh
  • March: 5.991 cents/kWh
  • April: 6.981 cents/kWh
  • May: 6.990 cents/kWh
  • June: 7.231 cents/kWh
  • July: 9.578 cents/kWh
  • August: 10.191 cents/kWh
  • September: 8.2 cents/kWh
  • October: 7.342 cents/kWh
  • November: 8.63 cents/kWh
  • December: 8.069 cents/kWh 

Are my electricity bills going to increase in the months ahead?

Now that the price cap is gone, many households and small businesses are concerned about facing higher utility costs in the months ahead. 

Power prices reached historically low averages in 2017, but the average rate in Alberta was 7.3 cents/kWh for the 2002-2018 period, which is considerably above the price cap, especially in cents/kWh terms.

The future of electricity prices is still unclear. Consumers will have to wait and see whether rates will go up or down. We can expect to see RRO prices fluctuate slightly more now that they are free to go above the 6.8 cents/kWh threshold, as it happened in December and for most of the time in 2019.

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Alberta / 5 years ago

The electricity price cap in Alberta is gone. What now?

Alberta

Alberta mother accuses health agency of trying to vaccinate son against her wishes

Published on November 22, 2024

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From LifeSiteNews

By Clare Marie Merkowsky

 

Alberta Health Services has been accused of attempting to vaccinate a child in school against his parent’s wishes.  

On November 6, Alberta Health Services staffers visited Edmonton Hardisty School where they reportedly attempted to vaccinate a grade 6 student despite his parents signing a form stating that they did not wish for him to receive the vaccines.  

 

“It is clear they do not prioritize parental rights, and in not doing so, they traumatize students,” the boy’s mother Kerri Findling told the Counter Signal. 

During the school visit, AHS planned to vaccinate sixth graders with the HPV and hepatitis B vaccines. Notably, both HPV and hepatitis B are vaccines given to prevent diseases normally transmitted sexually.  

Among the chief concerns about the HPV vaccine has been the high number of adverse reactions reported after taking it, including a case where a 16 year-old Australian girl was made infertile due to the vaccine.  

Additionally, in 2008, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration received reports of 28 deaths associated with the HPV vaccine. Among the 6,723 adverse reactions reported that year, 142 were deemed life-threatening and 1,061 were considered serious.   

Children whose parents had written “refused” on their forms were supposed to return to the classroom when the rest of the class was called into the vaccination area.  

However, in this case, Findling alleged that AHS staffers told her son to proceed to the vaccination area, despite seeing that she had written “refused” on his form. 

When the boy asked if he could return to the classroom, as he was certain his parents did not intend for him to receive the shots, the staff reportedly said “no.” However, he chose to return to the classroom anyway.    

Following his parents’ arrival at the school, AHS claimed the incident was a misunderstanding due to a “new hire,” attesting that the mistake would have been caught before their son was vaccinated.   

“If a student leaves the vaccination center without receiving the vaccine, it should be up to the parents to get the vaccine at a different time, if they so desire, not the school to enforce vaccination on behalf of AHS,” Findling declared.  

Findling’s story comes just a few months after Alberta Premier Danielle Smith promised a new Bill of Rights affirming “God-given” parental authority over children. 

A draft version of a forthcoming Alberta Bill of Rights provided to LifeSiteNews includes a provision beefing up parental rights, declaring the “freedom of parents to make informed decisions concerning the health, education, welfare and upbringing of their children.” 

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Alberta

Alberta’s fiscal update projects budget surplus, but fiscal fortunes could quickly turn

Published on November 21, 2024

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From the Fraser Institute

By Tegan Hill

According to the recent mid-year update tabled Thursday, the Smith government projects a $4.6 billion surplus in 2024/25, up from the $2.9 billion surplus projected just a few months ago. Despite the good news, Premier Smith must reduce spending to avoid budget deficits.

The fiscal update projects resource revenue of $20.3 billion in 2024/25. Today’s relatively high—but very volatile—resource revenue (including oil and gas royalties) is helping finance today’s spending and maintain a balanced budget. But it will not last forever.

For perspective, in just the last decade the Alberta government’s annual resource revenue has been as low as $2.8 billion (2015/16) and as high as $25.2 billion (2022/23).

And while the resource revenue rollercoaster is currently in Alberta’s favor, Finance Minister Nate Horner acknowledges that “risks are on the rise” as oil prices have dropped considerably and forecasters are projecting downward pressure on prices—all of which impacts resource revenue.

In fact, the government’s own estimates show a $1 change in oil prices results in an estimated $630 million revenue swing. So while the Smith government plans to maintain a surplus in 2024/25, a small change in oil prices could quickly plunge Alberta back into deficit. Premier Smith has warned that her government may fall into a budget deficit this fiscal year.

This should come as no surprise. Alberta’s been on the resource revenue rollercoaster for decades. Successive governments have increased spending during the good times of high resource revenue, but failed to rein in spending when resource revenues fell.

Previous research has shown that, in Alberta, a $1 increase in resource revenue is associated with an estimated 56-cent increase in program spending the following fiscal year (on a per-person, inflation-adjusted basis). However, a decline in resource revenue is not similarly associated with a reduction in program spending. This pattern has led to historically high levels of government spending—and budget deficits—even in more recent years.

Consider this: If this fiscal year the Smith government received an average level of resource revenue (based on levels over the last 10 years), it would receive approximately $13,000 per Albertan. Yet the government plans to spend nearly $15,000 per Albertan this fiscal year (after adjusting for inflation). That’s a huge gap of roughly $2,000—and it means the government is continuing to take big risks with the provincial budget.

Of course, if the government falls back into deficit there are implications for everyday Albertans.

When the government runs a deficit, it accumulates debt, which Albertans must pay to service. In 2024/25, the government’s debt interest payments will cost each Albertan nearly $650. That’s largely because, despite running surpluses over the last few years, Albertans are still paying for debt accumulated during the most recent string of deficits from 2008/09 to 2020/21 (excluding 2014/15), which only ended when the government enjoyed an unexpected windfall in resource revenue in 2021/22.

According to Thursday’s mid-year fiscal update, Alberta’s finances continue to be at risk. To avoid deficits, the Smith government should meaningfully reduce spending so that it’s aligned with more reliable, stable levels of revenue.

Author:

Tegan Hill
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