Manitoba Hydro proposes electricity rate hike of nearly 11% over 3 years

Bartley Kives · CBC

· Posted: Mar 29, 2025 7:00 AM EDT | Last Updated: 10 minutes ago

Manitoba Hydro is seeking support to rise energy rates by astir 11 per cent implicit the adjacent 3 years successful bid to hole aging infrastructure, summation generating capableness and mitigate the effects of drought and debt.

The Crown corporation asked the Public Utilities Board day to o.k. 3 yearly complaint hikes of 3.5 per cent, opening successful 2026, according to documents published Friday afternoon.

The hikes would travel a one-year complaint frost promised by the NDP government — but criticized arsenic reckless by user advocates and the Progressive Conservative Opposition.

In its exertion to the Public Utilities Board, Hydro says it indispensable walk $31 cardinal implicit the adjacent 2 decades to amended the reliability of its existing infrastructure and grow its capableness to make electricity.

Some of the infrastructure on Bipole I and Bipole II, two of Hydro's three main transmission lines, is much than 50 years old, which is "one to 3 decades past the manufacture expected work life," and volition unsocial requires billions worthy of upgrades successful the coming decades, the corp writes successful its rate application.

Hydro besides states it indispensable summation its generating capableness by 2030 successful bid to debar electrical-capacity shortfalls during peak-use periods successful the winter. This winter, the corp notified the Public Utilities Board of its volition to physique a brace of caller fuel-combustion turbines astatine a outgo of $1.4 cardinal to conscionable this demand.

In its complaint application, Hydro warned it whitethorn request to physique much state turbines from 2035 to 2045, contempt a provincial NDP directive to halt burning substance to make energy by 2035.

"The existent load forecast does not correspond a way to nett zero [carbon emissions] and arsenic specified determination is the imaginable that further investments volition beryllium needed," the exertion states. "In addition, inflationary factors proceed to germinate and make uncertainty in current and aboriginal superior costs."

Hydro is already carrying $24.6 cardinal worthy of debt, which is $940 cardinal higher than the forecast from its past complaint application. Hydro revenues were down due to the fact that of "drought and debased h2o implicit the past 2 years," the complaint exertion states.

In a connection issued Friday evening, Hydro noted the projected complaint hikes would be the archetypal for the Crown corp since rates went up by one per cent connected April 1, 2024.

"We recognize this is simply a challenging clip for Manitobans already paying higher prices for galore goods and services," Hydro president and CEO Allan Danroth said successful the statement. "Manitoba Hydro is besides facing accrued costs and the rates we're requesting volition guarantee we tin proceed to supply safe, reliable vigor present and into the future."

Hydro has been informing astir the request walk billions connected infrastructure and caller generating capableness since 2023. The provincial NDP nevertheless promised to institute a Hydro complaint frost erstwhile it ran for bureau that autumn and has lauded a complaint frost for the 2025 calendar year.

Katrine Dilay, a lawyer representing the Manitoba subdivision of the Consumers Association of Canada, has repeatedly questioned the fiscal contented of a Hydro complaint freeze.

Last fall, she warned complaint hikes are required to to conscionable Manitoba's vigor and capableness needs implicit the adjacent decade.

"So from our clients' perspectives, the committedness from the authorities creates a important hazard for aboriginal consumers of higher than indispensable complaint increases," Dilay said successful November.

PC Hydro professional Lauren Stone has besides questioned the contented of the complaint freeze.

In a connection issued precocious connected Friday, NDP authorities spokesperson Amy Tuckett-McGimpsey said the Hydro complaint frost provided "much-needed alleviation for families."

The trio of 3.5 per cent complaint hikes, which works retired to a compound hike of 10.9 per cent implicit 3 years, she said, "balances affordability with investments successful Hydro to guarantee we physique our system for the future."

Hydro is besides committed to cutting costs, Tuckett-McGimpsey said.