Hydro rates heat up power debate
BC Hydro's plans for rate increases totaling 15 per cent in the next two years and projections of more increases to come have lit up the debate about private power development and the government's push for electricity self-sufficiency.
Documents released with Tuesday's provincial budget show projected increases that would total a 33 per cent increase by 2013 if all the rate hikes were approved by the B.C. Utilities Commission.
Lobby groups representing public and private power interests have traded blame for years over the rising cost of electricity in B.C. But both agree that any new sources of electricity built today will be far more expensive than the cheap power generated by the province's network of big dams.
Finance Minister Colin Hansen said the main reasons for rising rates at BC Hydro are the need to upgrade existing facilities and build costly expansions to help reduce the province's power imports.
"The challenge Hydro has is that we are a net electricity importer in British Columbia," Hansen said Wednesday. "Hydro has a lot of facilities and equipment, including turbines that were built in the 1960s, 1970s and need to be modernized, need to be updated, and that's all going to cost money."
Upgrades underway or planned at BC Hydro include a 500-megawatt expansion of Revelstoke Dam, BC Hydro's newest and most efficient large dam built in 1984. Also in the works is the addition of two turbines at the nearby Mica Dam, which will add another 1,000 megawatts of capacity, and major upgrades at W.A.C. Bennett, Peace Canyon and Coquitlam dams and their associated powerhouses.
Tom Hackney of the B.C. Sustainable Energy Association said budgeting $35 million to revive LiveSmartBC, the province's building retrofit program, is a step in the right direction. But he questioned the consistency of the B.C. government's effort.
"We see $100 million for climate action and clean energy development, but we also see $1.4 billion for highway expansions," Hackney said.
