NL Hydro asking consumers to pay for its negligence, says consumer advocate

The province's consumer advocate is confused and dismayed by Newfoundland and Labrador Hydro's recent announcement that it would be seeking another increase for electricity rates.

On July 28, Newfoundland and Labrador Hydro announced it would be asking the Public Utilities Board for a rate increase of 13 per cent over two years.

The request will follow a nine per cent hike in rates which came into effect July 1.

• Electricity rates to jump 13% — if NL Hydro gets what it wants 
• PUB approves 9% electricity rate hike for July 1

"I don't think it's in the utility's best interest to keep increasing prices," said Dennis Browne, the province's consumer advocate, who represents the public's interests whenever there are applications made to the Public Utilities Board. "It's the wrong signal to be sending."

'Their negligence to begin with'

Dawn Dalley, Hydro's vice president of regulatory affairs and corporate services, told CBC News on July 28 that the request is to cover improvement costs to prevent widespread outage situations like Dark NL.

Browne isn't buying it.

"The evidence was Dark NL was entirely their problem," he said. "They had allowed the system to decline, they weren't keeping up with safety standards and that's why we had Dark NL — because they put their entire focus off the island, put their entire focus on Muskrat Falls and forgot about us and got caught."

"Now they're coming to look for more money from the rate payers of the island, and of the rate payers from Labrador, to pay for what was their negligence to begin with."

Release 'clumsily drafted'

Browne also says the release issued by Hydro announcing they would seek approval for an increase was confusing and "clumsily drafted."

The release says that any savings from bringing power from Labrador or Nova Scotia through the new transmission lines be set aside to offset rate increases from Muskrat Falls.

"But the fact of the matter is that Muskrat Falls is not in the jurisdiction of the Public Utilities Board," said Browne. "So I don't understand how parts of that application which pertain to Muskrat Falls could be brought before the board."

Browne says that the board is still waiting for the full application.

"The application itself hasn't been distributed to the parties yet," he said. "We don't know the particulars."