The average Thunder Bay homeowner can expect to shell out an additional $60 per year for power because of a government-mandated hydroelectric rate increase which took effect June 1, with more hikes expected this fall.
The rate increase means Thunder Bay Hydro bills will be inflated by between seven and 16 per cent, depending on a customer's rate class (residential, general service or industrial). The average residential customer will pay between 7.5 and eight per cent more, while industrial companies could see increases as high as 15 per cent.
The move by the Ontario Energy Board was prompted by the Ontario government, which instructed all of the province's municipal electric utilities to increase their rates by 0.735 cents per kilowatt hour of electricity as of June 1. Another increase is planned for October.
The increases are being made in an attempt to pay down the province's approximate $38-billion debt left by the former Ontario Hydro.