Hydro-Québec proposes to implement a three percent tariff increase starting next year

Hydro-Québec has announced that it will increase rates starting next year.

From April 1, 2025, a rate increase of 3 percent will be implemented for private customers, 3.9 percent for business customers and 3.3 percent for large industrial customers.

The utility announced Thursday that it has submitted tariff applications to the Régie de l’énergie, which will review the applications before approving them.

In a press release, Hydro-Québec said the increases are the result of “inflation over the past few years and are equal to those for 2024 for residential customers and large industrial customers.”

As for commercial rates, the proposed increase is lower than for 2024, when it was 5.1 percent.

Hydro-Québec points out that a three per cent increase in the domestic rate would mean an increase of $2.40 for a home. The impact would be $4.50 for a small home and $6.00 and $7.40 for a medium-sized home and a large home, respectively.

The public hearing and the investigation by the Régie de l’énergie are scheduled for September to December. The decision is expected by March at the latest.

At the same time as the applications were filed, Hydro-Québec also announced new incentives to encourage better consumption and lower electricity bills.

In particular, the company wants to launch a “voluntary incentive rate” for customers who shift their consumption, such as by charging their electric cars overnight. Those who sign up could save up to $350 a year, Hydro-Québec said.

They also want to control overconsumption by imposing a higher rate on households that consume more than 50,000 kWh per year, which is about 1 percent of residential customers, Hydro-Québec said.

In addition, the company aims to facilitate home energy production with solar panels and stimulate the installation of efficient heat pumps by increasing the energy efficiency budget from $150 million to $500 million in 2025.

–This report from La Presse Canadienne was translated by CityNews