CORNWALL, Ontario – While the rest of Ontario is gasping at skyrocketing electric bills, Cornwall Electric customers will see no increase this year.
The utility said Tuesday it is freezing rates for the coming year – the second year in a row it has done so.
Michael O’Reilly, Regional Manager of Cornwall Electric, attributed the rate stability to two electricity supply contracts previously negotiated with Hydro Quebec. The two long-term wholesale agreements continue to provide security of supply and rate stability.
“Like all other utilities in Ontario, the wholesale cost of electricity is passed through to customers. The long-term contracts with Hydro Quebec provide security of supply and rate stability through to December 2019,” said O’Reilly. “Cornwall Electric rates continue to compare very favorably to surrounding electrical utilities”.
The wholesale cost of electricity represents approximately 80% of the customer’s total bill. The remaining 20% represents the distribution charges.
These distribution charges pay for Cornwall Electric to deliver safe and reliable power from the Cedars Rapids Transmission lines through the Cornwall Electric substations then to the customers’ homes and businesses and to provide for system maintenance and capital equipment replacement. In 2016, Cornwall Electric’s capital program will invest approximately $4 million in distribution system expansions and capital replacements.
Cornwall Electric supplies electricity to 24,300 customers in the City of Cornwall, South Glengarry, South Stormont, and the Ontario portion of the Mohawk Territory of Akwesasne.
It is a wholly owned subsidiary of FortisOntario, headquartered in Fort Erie with operations in distribution and transmission serving approximately 65,000 customers in Fort Erie, Port Colborne, Cornwall, Gananoque and the Algoma District of Ontario. FortisOntario is 100% owned by Fortis Inc. of St. John’s, Newfoundland. For more information on FortisOntario, please visit the corporate website at www.fortisontario.com.
