Water is a precious commodity, but B.C. is just giving it away. Under regulations in an otherwise commendable piece of new legislation – the Water Sustainability Act – the B.C. government will begin charging companies a small fee to access the province's groundwater. (Now it is free.)
BC Hydro operates 32 hydroelectric facilities and three natural gas-fueled thermal power plants. As of 2014, 95 per cent of the province's electricity was produced by hydroelectric generating stations, which consist mostly of large hydroelectric dams on the Columbia and Peace Rivers.
Its mandate is to generate, purchase, distribute and sell electricity. BC Hydro operates 32 hydroelectric facilities and three natural gas-fueled thermal power plants.
Total electricity energy use in Canada in 2016 was 1,785 petajoules. Québec has the largest share of consumption at 35%, followed by Ontario at 27%, Alberta at 11%, British Columbia and the Territories at 12%, the Atlantic provinces at 7%, Saskatchewan and Manitoba both at 4%.
Since 2001, B.C. has been a net importer of electricity, bringing more power into the province than it ships to customers such as California. Much of the imported electricity comes from emissions-heavy coal-fired plants in Alberta. B.C.'s new energy plan calls for the province to be self-sufficient by 2016.
As of 2018, for BC Hydro customers, the energy charge is: Residential: $0.0884 per kWh for the first 1,350 kWh in an average two-month billing cycle, and $0.1326 per kWh for any additional consumption. Small General Service: $0.1173 per kWh. Medium General Service: $0.0906 per kWh.
BC Hydro supplies electricity to Vancouver Island from the Peace River hydroelectric system through Kelly Lake Substation and from the Columbia River system through Nicola Substation. BC Hydro operates 4 hydroelectric systems with 6 generating stations on Vancouver Island.
Adding a solar panel system that is connected to the power grid will also go a long way towards increasing the value of your property. For residents and businesses that are unable to connect to BC Hydro's grid, solar energy is a great choice when it comes to having a reliable source of electricity on your property.
BC Hydro operates 32 hydroelectric facilities and three natural gas-fueled thermal power plants. As of 2014, 95 per cent of the province's electricity was produced by hydroelectric generating stations, which consist mostly of large hydroelectric dams on the Columbia and Peace Rivers.
Electricity sold to California represents 15% of total Canadian power exports. The majority of that electricity is from British Columbia (B.C.). In 2010, 43% of the electricity exported from B.C. went to California. In 2016, 79% of B.C. electricity exports went to California.
Solar panels the top choice in selling electricity back to BC Hydro. Installing solar panels is only one way you can generate your own electricity. And we'll buy any of that energy you don't use.
For the most part, Vancouver residents are used to drawing power from the grid and paying BC Hydro for the service. With a solar panel setup, however, BC Hydro customers can actually start to generate their own clean energy, and in some cases can sell some of that electricity back to the grid.
How to Sell Electricity Back to the Grid
- Check with your state and utility company. Over 40 states allow for some kind of “net metering.” Translation: households that generate electricity through residential solar projects can receive checks from the power companies for excess energy sent to the grid.
- See about tax benefits.
- Install and sell.
Since rates vary with the market value of electricity, there's no set dollar figure that you can expect to take home. However, many home producers make around $3,000 per year from a combination of REC sales and governmental clean energy incentives.
How to Sell Electricity Back to the Grid
- Check with your state and utility company. Over 40 states allow for some kind of “net metering.” Translation: households that generate electricity through residential solar projects can receive checks from the power companies for excess energy sent to the grid.
- See about tax benefits.
- Install and sell.
The inverter then converts DC electricity from your solar panels into AC electricity. This solar power is then suitable for household use. When your solar power system is producing more electricity than is required, it feeds the excess power back into the grid.
The average apartment or condo's bill is now $43 per month. The average single-family home's hydro bill is $103 per month.
Natural gas is produced in the northeastern part of B.C., predominantly from the Montney Formation. Development of tight gas in the Montney is the primary factor behind B.C.'s gas production doubling between 2006 and 2018.
Fortis BC is the largest distributor of natural gas to Vancouver Island, serving more than 1.2 million customers in 135 communities in BC. The company covers most of eastern Vancouver Island from Campbell River south to Victoria. Fortis offers home and business rate structures based on various usage categories.
FortisBC is an electricity and natural gas distribution utility in the Canadian province of British Columbia, a subsidiary of Newfoundland-based Fortis Inc., Canada's largest private utility company. The company owns and operates approximately 47,500 kilometres of natural gas transmission and distribution pipelines.
Natural gas is a non-renewable hydrocarbon used as a source of energy for heating, cooking, and electricity generation. It is also used as a fuel for vehicles and as a chemical feedstock in the manufacture of plastics and other commercially important organic chemicals.
Fortis Inc.
| Type | Public |
|---|
| Industry | Electricity generation & distribution |
| Founded | 1987 |
| Headquarters | St. John's, Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada |
| Key people | Barry V. Perry, President & CEO |
Liquefied Natural Gas Production and Sales
FortisBC is the owner and operator of the only two LNG facilities in British Columbia. They have had an LNG plant on Tilbury Island in Delta BC in operation since 1971. They also have a facility at Mt Hayes near Ladysmith on Vancouver Island.If your electricity use has remained relatively level, your bill may be higher due to other billing factors, including: Rate changes: Changes to electricity rates will make your bill higher even if you use the same amount of electricity as you did previously. Learn more about your electricity rate.
The average residential cost of electricity in British Columbia is $0.124 per kWh, or $124 per month, assuming an average monthly usage of 1,000 kWh.
A common wattage for space heaters is 1,500 watts. Apply the formula 1,500 x 24 ÷ 1,000 x $0.20 to determine the cost to run the space heater for a day. (Dividing by 1,000 changes watt hours to kilowatt hours.) In this case, it will cost $7.20 if it was running for 24 hours straight.
Electricity (produced from renewable sources) is the cleanest form of heating. For example, cheaper rates in the evening or the night (where demand is low) would encourage people to charge their electrical vehicles then (instead of during the day).
The average apartment or condo's bill is now $43 per month. The average single-family home's hydro bill is $103 per month.
Electric Heating Electricity Cost Calculator
| Power Rating | Per Hour | Per Day* |
|---|
| 500W | 9.27p 500W | £0.56 3kWh |
| 800W | 14.83p 800W | £0.89 4.8kWh |
| 1000W (1kW) | 18.54p 1000W | £1.11 6kWh |
| 1200W (1.2kW) | 22.25p 1200W | £1.33 7.2kWh |
A small home in a temperate climate might use something like 200 kwh per month, and a larger home in the south where air conditioners account for the largest portion of home energy usage might use 2,000 kWh or more. The average U.S. home uses about 900 kWh per month. So that's 30 kWh per day or 1.25 kWh per hour.
The average price people in the U.S. pay for electricity is about 12 cents per kilowatt-hour. (Context: A typical U.S. household uses about 908 kWh a month of electricity.) But there's huge variation from state to state.
It's unusual, but we're billed monthly rather than once every two months for the majority of BC Hydro customers. When it gets really cold, like it did last December when our monthly bill rose to a near-record $146, there's no avoiding a higher bill.
