Energy Minister wants information ready for committee hearing in February
New Brunswickers who demanded answers on NB Power bills might get some answers when crown corporation officials appear before the public accounts committee on Feb. 18.
MLAs took part in a virtual information session with NB Power officials on Monday, Jan. 20, after constituency offices of Western New Brunswick MLAs were inundated with calls.
“I’ve collected data from dozens and dozens of people,” explained Carleton-Victoria MLA Margaret Johnson. “We’ve heard from people who have done energy upgrades, and others who have tried to cut their consumption, and still their bills are through the roof. Something isn’t adding up.”
Woodstock-Hartland MLA Bill Hogan heard the same.
“I’ve received lots of complaints from people who said they received their highest power bill ever. It certainly seems to me that there has been an error in the reading of killowat-per-hour usage. My own bill has an increase of 1,000 kwh over last month and is the highest reading for the last 12 months,” said Hogan. “It would appear that this issue is widespread and suggests an error of some sort. I am hopeful that we can get to the bottom of the issue and get it resolved soon.”
New Brunswick Premier Susan Holt said MLAs were working for days to understand dramatic increases in power bills.
“We’ve been listening to New Brunswickers, and we share your concerns about expensive power bills,” she told reporters, noting that many heard from people who had “significant spikes in power bills that were unexpected, that didn’t go to trend and we want to get to the bottom of this.”
Holly Acheson hopes the review will provide her with some answers. She lives in a recently constructed, above-grade, 2560-square-foot ICF (insulated concrete form) home in Woodstock.
“We have a forced-air heat pump. In the summer, it’s set to 70 and in the winter, it’s at 67. That never changes. Alex (her husband) is very serious about the thermostat,” said Acheson.
Despite her husband’s cost-saving measures, they’ve noticed drastic fluctuations in their power bills since the summer.
Last August, her NB Power bill said she used 3650 kwh hours, compared to 1331 kwh during the same month in 2023.
“My smart meter was installed in early summer 2024; that’s when I noticed my bills had escalated extremely. I do not have a hot tub, I am not running a grow op, and no I am not mining bitcoin. We have all LED light bulbs. NB Power’s explanation is that we built a garage, but that was 2021; that doesn’t explain the jump. And in the summer, we live at our camp two days a week. It doesn’t add up.”
Andrew Stephenson says things aren’t adding up at his shop in Floreceville-Bristol, either.
“It usually stays consistent in the winter, and we took a week and a half off at Christmas so the thermostat was turned down over that period of time. It was unusual to be as high as it was. “
Despite his vigilance, the difference between his shop’s December and January power bills is dramatic: 2686 kWh to 7407 kWh — from $401.32 to a whopping $1,054.70.
“I have never had this high of a power bill or even close to this before,” added Stephenson.
Energy Minister René Legacy wants the third-party review completed so that the findings can be shared with the legislature’s committee meetings on Feb. 21.
“They (NB Power) also share the concern that if there are any significant concerns from New Brunswickers, whether their system is compromised, that is an issue for them too, so they want to get to the bottom of it,” Legacy said.
Before the third-party review announcement, N.B. Power spokesperson Dominique Couture responded to questions from the River Valley Sun seeking reasons why consumption costs rose dramatically despite little change in power usage from the same period last year.
“We understand that affordability is a real concern for many customers, especially during the colder months when energy use for heating naturally increases, and are aware that some customers have raised questions about higher-than-expected power bills,” Couture told the River Valley Sun. “We are actively looking into these questions, and based on our initial review, the colder temperature in the month of December compared to last year seems to be a major contributing factor.”
Environment Canada meteorologist Jill Maepea said the Woodstock area experienced a colder December 2024 than the previous year but noted that last month was still warmer than usual.
She said the December 2024 mean temperature of minus-5.7 Celsius was 1.3 degrees warmer than average.
However, Maepae added that December 2023’s mean temperature of minus-2 Celsius was “the second warmest on record.”
The high power bills in a population already reeling from rising costs across the board have resulted in complaints to the power corporation, MLAs and across social media. Consumers’ blame ranges from rate hikes and increased service charges to the switch to smart meters.
Couture said a higher December bill is unrelated to any rate hike and has little to do with higher service charges.
“The only rate change since April 1, 2024, was a reduction in December following the EUB decision,” she said. “Additionally, customers would have noticed a small adjustment to their monthly service charge, an increase or decrease of about $1, and a one-time credit or debit of approximately $11, to comply with the EUB decision.”
Couture added that smart meters do not affect power usage calculations, noting that the new, higher-tech smart meters collect the same information as traditional meters.
“Bills are based on how much energy is consumed, not the meter itself,” she said.
Couture outlined tips they share with customers to help them better understand their power bills.
- Bill components: Customers can learn more about how their bill is broken down here – Reading a Typical Bill.
- Billing periods: These usually range from 28 to 33 days, and longer billing periods can result in higher charges.
- Energy use comparison: Bills include a comparison of electricity use to last month and the same month last year (excluding service charges, rentals, and taxes).
- Smart meter insights: For those with smart meters, online accounts provide tools to track and manage energy use. More details are here: Residential Usage Data
NB Power encourages anyone with ongoing concerns to contact our Customer Care team at 1 800 663-6272, noting advisors are available to investigate high bills and troubleshoot if there’s an issue.
(With files from Theresa Blackburn)
