BCUC decision on BC Hydro's Revenue Requirements Application for F2009-F2010 On March 27, BC Hydro issued a compliance filing with the British Columbia Utilities Commission (BCUC) in response to the commission's March 13 decision on BC Hydro's two-year Revenue Requirements Application [PDF, 2.5 Mb] for fiscal 2009 and 2010. The Revenue Requirements Application reflects the expenditures BC Hydro requires to operate in fiscal years 2009 and 2010. The application was originally filed with the commission in February of 2008. Based on the BCUC decision, BC Hydro has calculated that rates will increase by 2.34 per cent in fiscal 2009 (ending March 31, 2009) and by 8.74 per cent in fiscal 2010 (starting April 1, 2009). As a result, and given the interim rate increase of 6.56 per cent that has been in effect since April 1, 2008, residential customers with an average consumption of 11,000 kilowatt hours (kWh) per year, for example, can expect a credit refund of approximately $30 for fiscal 2009. Customers can expect to receive their refund in the form of a credit to their bill during the June billing cycle. For the average residential customer, BC Hydro estimates the bill impact to be $2-4 more per month, effective April 1, 2009. This bill impact takes into account an increase in the rate rider from 0.5 per cent to 1.0 per cent, also effective 1 April, 2009. Residential Conservation Rate As a result of the BCUC decision, the residential two-step Conservation Rate will be adjusted as follows, effective April 1, 2009:   1 Apr 09 Old Step 1 (cents/kWh): 5.91 5.98 Step 2 (cents/kWh): 8.27 7.21 Bill impact on April 1, 2009 The following provides an example of the monthly bill impact to various residential customers based on their annual consumption: 5,000 kWh/year: $0.10 less per month 8,100 kWh/year: $0.70 more per month 11,000 kWh/year: $2.50 more per month (average consumption in B.C.) 22,000 kWh/year: $13 more per month Please see our Hot Topics section for more information about rates. The full BCUC decision is available here [PDF, 2.5 Mb].

For many years we have relied on the firm, reliable power generated from our heritage hydroelectric assets. But these dams and infrastructure, built in the 1950s, '60s and '70s, require significant reinvestment. And we need to add new sources of clean, renewable power to our system to meet demand for reliable power.

In fact, BC Hydro forecasts that the demand for electricity in British Columbia will grow between 20 and 35 per cent over the next 20 years.

For an explanation of these rate increases and how it might affect you, visit our Residential Rates page.

How BC Hydro's rates are set

The BCUC sets BC Hydro's residential and business electricity rates. BC Hydro serves all of its customers in accordance with the Electric Tariff, which includes terms, conditions, and rate schedules.

BC Hydro's rates are set assuming "normal" or average water years. As a result, BC Hydro sometimes earns less than the "allowed rate of return" and other times earns considerably more. The BCUC then adjusts rates so that the utility will be able to achieve the targeted rate of return. This rate of return, however, is not guaranteed. In fact, it is unlikely that any utility in any year will achieve its revenue targets precisely.

Cost of energy

BC Hydro's rates reflect the generation, transmission, distribution and customer service costs of providing electricity to our various customers.

Generation costs

Generation costs are the direct and allocated costs incurred to generate or procure electricity for use in B.C. These include water rental fees, energy purchases, natural gas fuel (for thermal plants) and other costs required to operate BC Hydro's generation system.

Transmission costs

Transmission costs are the direct and allocated costs incurred to transmit electricity on the high-voltage transmission system, from the point of generation or purchase, to the electricity delivery point or the low-voltage distribution system. These include metering, transformation costs and other costs related to BC Hydro's transmission system.

Distribution costs

Distribution costs are the direct and allocated costs incurred to transmit electricity on the low-voltage distribution system to the end user or customer. These include metering, transformation costs and other costs related to BC Hydro's distribution system.