We are regulated by the Nova Scotia Utility and Review Board (NSUARB)—they are responsible for ensuring customers receive power at fair rates. The NSURB uses a “cost of service” method which ensures that rates are set at a level that will allow us to recover costs plus a reasonable profit. Without a reasonable return, investors would not be willing to invest in the utility. 

A full breakdown of how rates are set by the NSUARB can be found on their website.

Residential and business customers have two charges on their bills: a base charge and an energy rate. The base charge is a set charge for the cost of delivering and maintaining electricity service. The energy charge is the price per kWh of energy used, which changes based on energy use habits for that period. The energy charge includes costs associated with the fuel used to make electricity and energy efficiency programs. 

Demand customers—which are primarily commercial or industrial customers with higher peak power demand periods—also have a demand charge. Demand billing is a standard practice used throughout North America to fairly recover costs from some business customers who use more than a specified amount of electricity during peak periods. Demand bills have two components: the total amount of electricity used (the energy charge), and the highest amount used within a 15-minute interval at any time during the customer’s billing period (the demand charge).