The battle over new north-south power lines Thursday saw Edmonton-owned Epcor Utilities up against industrial power consumers worried the proposed $4-billion expansion will push electricity rates too high and force some to leave the province – forestry companies told the panel to delay approval until a public hearing is held to assess the need for two new 500-kilovolt, DC lines, especially with new power plants opening in the south. As power rates rise, big users such as Alberta Newsprint Company and others will build generation capacity on-site rather than rely on the grid. That needs to be taken into account when AESO makes its estimate on the need for expanded transmission.
For almost two full days this week, there was no jet engine-like roar from the massive furnace, no crackle of melting scrap metal and no sirens indicating red hot liquid steel was about to pour into the ladle below at AltaSteel’s east Edmonton mill. Industrial and commercial users account for nearly 85 per cent of demand for electricity in the province. For industrial electricity consumers who aren’t on a fixed-rate contract in this deregulated electricity market, those hourly price fluctuations are serious business. While residential electricity bills are calculated based on a monthly rate, industrial users are metered and billed hourly. Workers remain on-site and are paid to tend to other duties as they wait for prices to dip low enough to restart the plants. This week’s shutdowns were not the first for AltaSteel. Knights said the plant loses some hours each month because of high electricity prices, typically in the afternoon when people get home. A fixed-price contract is not an option for AltaSteel because those prices are prohibitive.
