Hydro-Québec bills could double in next 10 years: Consumer rights group

Quebecers could see their electricity bill double in the next decade as the province moves toward greener energy sources, a consumer rights group is warning.

A report by the Union des consommateurs published Wednesday suggests that as of 2028, Hydro-Québec customers could face an annual rate increase of 5.6 to nine per cent 

It says a significant rate hike would strain household budgets and exacerbate financial pressure for many Quebecers who are already struggling.

"Without adequate protection measures, energy poverty is likely to affect a growing share of the population, affecting not only low-income households, but also middle-class households," says the report. 

Last year, the Quebec government capped rate increases for residential customers to three per cent until 2026. 

Premier François Legault said in October 2023 there was "no question" of increasing residential rates by more than inflation or three per cent. 

At a scrum on Wednesday, Energy Minister Pierre Fitzgibbon said he didn't think there would be major rate hikes to electricity over the next five years. But he said Quebecers should expect rates to increase. 

The province is trying to achieve carbon neutrality by 2050. In June, the minister tabled Bill 69, which lays the foundation for an integrated energy resources management plan. 

"We have two choices. We do nothing and continue to consume as we are right now or we decarbonize, but there's a price to pay," Fitzgibbon told reporters Wednesday. "The question is how do we smooth that increase?" 

Normand Mousseau, scientific director of the Institut de l'énergie Trottier at Polytechnique Montréal, said higher electricity costs are par for the course in an energy transition, noting that customers should shift their attention to the bottom line rather than focus on the price of electricity.

"When oil prices go up by 50 per cent, it's life, and we have to deal with it. If it's electricity, it's bad and it's the end of the world," he said. "You have to think about the energy bill and the energy is not only electricity," he said. 

Mousseau said going forward the main challenge will be to help transform the energy consumption of people in financial need who would be most affected by rate increases — not spare everyone from paying the real cost of energy. 

"All energy [costs] will increase, and that means we have to use [energy] better," he said. "Over 20 years, the total increase will not be so big, but in the first years, it will be important."

Rate hikes in report are 'speculative': Hydro-Québec

Last November, Hydro-Québec released its 2035 action plan, which calls for investments of up to $185 billion over the next few years to meet electricity demands by improving its grid and building more hydropower and pumped-storage facilities. 

In an email sent Wednesday, a spokesperson for Hydro-Québec called the rate increases mentioned in the Union des consommateurs report "speculative." 

"When the Action Plan 2035 was presented last November, Hydro-Québec committed to keeping its rates affordable," Hydro-Québec spokesperson Caroline Des Rosiers said. "In this context, our intention is to limit the rate increase to three per cent for residential customers." 

She noted the company would "continue its efforts to support low-come households," and promote energy efficiency incentives to reduce costs for clients.