Electric election: NB Power rates hikes, Lepreau loom over provincial vote

The Point Lepreau Nuclear Generating Station in this undated file photo. (Mike Cameron/CTV Atlantic)

NB Power’s historic rate increase request isn’t likely to be lowered by this fall's provincial election, with the Progressive Conservative government and official Liberal opposition both signaling intentions to stay out of the Energy and Utilities Board’s (EUB) process.

NB Power has been making its case before the EUB this summer for a two-year residential rate increase of nearly 20 per cent, saying it’s needed to address aging infrastructure and a debt of more than $5 billion at the utility.

The Progressive Conservatives and Liberals, which both have a political history of enforcing rate freezes at NB Power, have taken a different approach over the past several years. Of the most recent NB Power request, PC Premier Blaine Higgs and Liberal leader Susan Holt are suggesting the EUB process play out without any government intervention.

“There’s been a culture of political interference at NB Power where they’ve been told what rates to do and what policies to put in place… and that has come from political masters that have tied (NB Power’s) hands and limited their ability to deliver their business.” said Holt last week.

The Liberals have been pitching a removal of the provincial portion of HST on residential power bills since last year. Meanwhile, the PC’s July campaign promise to lower the HST from 15 to 13 per cent has been slated for power rates, too.

The Green Party made NB Power rate increases a part of its first official promise campaign, in the form of a rebate for low-income earners. When making the promise last week, Green Party leader David Coon referenced the Point Lepreau Nuclear Generating Station’s extended shutdown.

Coon said maintenance challenges at Point Lepreau “are responsible for two thirds of NB Power’s crushing debt.”

“One could say today’s power bills are in fact nuclear power bills,” said Coon.

Tom McClean, of the Coalition for Responsible Energy in New Brunswick, said cost-of-living matters would make an impact in the campaign.

“Power costs are going to be an issue,” said McLean, wondering if any campaign focus on NB Power would extend to Point Lepreau. “It should be. It’s not the only issue. But it’s certainly the biggest.”

NB Power said it expected Point Lepreau would be offline until at least mid-November.

Atlantic Canada’s only nuclear generating plant was granted a 10-year operating licence renewal in June 2022.

“Point Lepreau really does have a very strong track record, despite the last couple of years,” said Michelle Robichaud, president of the Atlantica Centre for Energy, based in Saint John. “Point Lepreau Nuclear Generating Station has truly been the backbone of New Brunswick and Prince Edward Island’s electricity supply for decades and supplied that strong, reliable baseload that is non-emitting.”

When NB Power’s rate proposal was announced late last year, president and CEO Lori Clark said the utility’s deadline to be coal free (2030) and net-zero deadlines (2035) called for a large hike immediately, while the ‘variance account recovery’ application cited unplanned outages at the Point Lepreau Nuclear Generating Station as a contributing reason for the increase.

In addition to Lepreau’s unplanned shutdowns, NB Power is warning of more financial pressures to come with the Mactaquac Dam refurbishment and Belledune Generating Station conversion.

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