COVID-19 Information Page
Please find the latest updates regarding COVID-19 below, with the most recent at the top.
New COVID-19 Recovery Rate for TOU Customers – June 1, 2020
The provincial government announced a new COVID-19 Recovery Rate for Ontario electricity customers on Time-of-Use (TOU) pricing. This fixed electricity price of 12.8 ¢/kWh will be automatically applied to all TOU customers 24 hours a day, 7 days a week and in place from June 1 – October 31, 2020.
The COVID-19 Recovery Rate of 12.8¢/kWh, is based on the average cost of electricity and is set by the Ontario Energy Board. This fixed rate will continue to suspend TOU prices in a fiscally responsible manner, as per the Ontario Energy Board.
North Bay Hydro knows that our customers may be experiencing hardship and we are here to help. Our commitment to customers is to work together to find solutions that take these challenging times into consideration, whether that means payment arrangements or providing information and direction to programs that may be available to assist (see the links below!). If you would like more information, please visit our website, or simply reach out to our Customer Service department at customerservice@northbayhydro.com or 705-474-8100.
Important Links:
Official Announcement
North Bay Hydro Assistance Programs
https://www.northbayhydro.com/residential/assistance-programs/
Best Regards,
The North Bay Hydro Team
Emergency Order (EO) Deferral of Global Adjustment Charges
To provide companies with temporary relief on their electricity bills during the COVID-19 pandemic, the Ontario government implemented an Emergency Order (EO) on Friday, May 1, 2020 and is deferring a portion of the Global Adjustment (GA) charges for industrial and commercial electricity consumers that do not participate in the Regulated Price Plan (RPP), starting April 2020.
The GA rate has been set at $0.115 per kilowatt-hour, which is roughly in line with the March 2020 value. Class A consumers who participate in the Industrial Conservation Initiative (ICI) (link to IESO) will receive the same percentage reduction in GA charges.– Class A eligible customers are notified directly by North Bay Hydro.
RPP customers are not impacted by this change and are receiving relief through the RPP pricing. Most residential and small commercial customers (and some larger commercial customers) are on the RPP.
However, residential and small commercial customers who are enrolled with a retailer are impacted by this change.
The government intends to keep this relief in place through the end of June 2020, subject to necessary extensions and approvals. It is the Province’s intention to recover the costs of this rate deferral beginning in January 2021.
Please contact us if you have any questions about your bill.
The Government of Ontario announced that it is extending emergency electricity rate relief to families, farms and small businesses until May 31, 2020. Customers who pay Time-Of-Use (TOU) electricity rates will continue to be billed at the lowest price, known as the off-peak price, 24 hours a day, seven days a week.
North Bay Hydro Distribution Limited is proud to support the initiative designed to provide support to both our Province and our community. We continue to encourage customers who may be experiencing hardship, surrounding their hydro bill, to contact our customer service department.
Letter from the President and CEO
May 1, 2020
Dear Customers/Stakeholders
Six weeks into the COVID-19 pandemic I believe North Bay and the surrounding area have done a great job mitigating the spread of the disease. With 15 of the 16 positive tests resolved this week, lets keep up the fight in flattening that curve.
As a business we continue to navigate a new way of working brought on by COVID-19, but our core values remain unchanged. We are dedicated to providing a safe and reliable supply of electricity to your businesses and homes, all while keeping our workers and the public safe. Focus on customer care remains paramount with staff ready to assist you in any way we can.
In continuing efforts to help our customers during these difficult times, I am pleased to announce that we have selected to defer our Ontario Energy Board (OEB) approved May 1, 2020 rate increase to November 1, 2020. This, in addition to the number of initiatives previously implemented, exemplifies the importance we put on you, our customers.
Summarized below are the list of other measures that have been implemented to aid customers to date:
- The disconnection moratorium was extended from April 30 to July 31, 2020, meaning disconnections will not occur for non-payment for residential and small-business customers before July 31, 2020. On top of this, we are committed to working with customers in all classes to avoid disconnections through the pandemic.
- As of March 24, customers who pay Time of Use (TOU) rates are only being charged the off-peak pricing for electricity consumption. That means the rate of 10.1 cents/kWh is being utilized 24 hours a day, seven days a week. Currently this relief is committed to May 7th, 2020.
- Flexible payment options are being made available for anyone struggling to pay their hydro bill. If you find yourself in this situation please reach out to our customer service team and we will gladly assist in creating a payment plan that is manageable (contact information at the end of the letter).
In addition to the above:
- We encourage customers to use North Bay Hydro’s online “My Account tool”. This secure, self-serve portal is available at www.northbayhydro.com and allows changes to your account, access to daily energy consumption information and more!
- We encourage customers in need of support to investigate several assistance programs that are available. Detailed information can be found at https://www.northbayhydro.com/residential/assistance-programs/ or by contacting our customer service department (contact information at the end of the letter).
- We encourage customers to practice conservation where possible to help reduce consumption and in turn lower monthly costs. Resources and tips on conservation can be found at www.saveonenergy.ca
- Business processes remain altered in efforts to mitigate the spread of COVID-19 and therefore the main office remains closed to the public at this time, along with all the other measures mentioned in my first letter.
I would also like to encourage everyone to take advantage of a positivity initiative the employees of North Bay Hydro Distribution Limited and Services started last week by saying, “Thank You”, to the frontline workers at the North Bay Regional Health Centre. Each and every week we will display a sign, hung from a bucket truck, provided by someone in our community, that spreads positivity to a group, a business, or an individual. For more details on how to participate in this great initiative please contact Neil Russell – nrussell@northbayhydro.com.
In closing, I would like to say thank you to everyone in the community for the part you are playing in preventing the spread of COVID-19. It is incredible to see everyone in action. North Bay Hydro is in it like the rest of you, and we are here to help in any way we can.
In my first letter, I concluded by stating we can do this together, but only together. After six weeks, I can definitely state, we are doing this together!
Community Power.
Matt Payne, P. Eng.
President and Chief Executive Officer
Contact Us:
Customer Service Department Phone: 705-474-8100
Customer Service Department Email: customerservice@northbayhydro.com
@NBHydro – Facebook | Outage News and Information
@NBHydro – Twitter | Outage News and Information
Temporary 45-Day Emergency Relief to all Households.
North Bay Hydro is pleased to announce that the Government of Ontario has implemented a temporary 45-day emergency relief to all households, farms and small businesses who pay time-of-use (TOU) electricity rates. If you are a North Bay Hydro customer, and are eligible, all electricity consumed after 12:00 a.m. EST on Tuesday, March 24, 2020 will transition to the off-peak rate of 10.1 ¢/kWh; 24 hours a day, seven days a week. No phone call or application is necessary for this new rate structure to take effect, it will happen automatically.
For clarity, it is important to note:
March bills
- Are currently being issued
- Are for consumption of energy in February
- Therefore, they will not reflect the rate change
April bills
- Will be issued mid to late April
- Are for consumption of energy in March
- Therefore, they will reflect the rate change, but include:
- Standard TOU rates for energy consumed before March 24, 2020
- Only the off-peak rate for all energy consumed on or after March 24, 2020
Most importantly, North Bay Hydro is here to help. Customers that are experiencing hardship are encouraged to contact the team at customerservice@northbayhydro.com, or call 705-474-8100 and we will work with you to find a solution on flexible payment options.
We would also like to take this opportunity to once again stress the necessity of listening to our health officials and supporting front line workers by staying home whenever possible.
We are happy to assist the province in passing on these savings to our customers, our community, and still believe that together we can get through this, but only together.
Community Power
Sincerely,
Matt Payne
President and CEO
WHAT WE ARE DOING
As of March 17, 2020, North Bay Hydro invoked a number of internal processes to help mitigate the spread of COVID-19, ensure a safe work environment, and maintain the health and safety of our dedicated employees which include:
- All non-essential travel is prohibited.
- All meetings to be held by teleconference or through web-based applications.
- Questionnaires to be conducted before any required interaction with customers or third parties along with utilization of recommended personal protective equipment.
- Social distancing where possible.
- Quarantine protocols established and strictly enforced.
- Enabled work from home for all employees capable of doing so.
WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW
The provincial wide disconnection moratorium for residential customers that lasts from Dec 1 2019 to May 1 2020 has been extended to July 31 2020, to ease pressure on customers.
The Government of Ontario is providing temporary 45-day emergency relief to support Ontarians impacted by the global COVID-19 outbreak. As of midnight Tuesday, March 24 2020, households, farms and small businesses who pay Time-of-Use (TOU) electricity rates will be charged off-peak rates 24 hours a day, seven days a week.
FAQs
What is being done to support households and businesses with increased electricity usage during this COVID-19 outbreak?
For electricity consumed starting at 12:00 a.m. EST on Tuesday, March 24, 2020, households, farms and small businesses paying TOU electricity rates will be charged the lowest price, known as the off-peak electricity rate, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.
How is this being implemented? Do ratepayers need to take any action in order to receive the off-peak pricing?
No action is required by electricity consumers: this change will be applied automatically for everyone paying time-of-use rates, for electricity consumed starting at 12:00 a.m. EST on March 24, 2020.
Depending on billing cycles, some ratepayers will see these changes on their next electricity bill.
In cases where a ratepayer’s billing cycle ends before their local distribution company implements this change, they will receive the reduced rate as a credit on a future bill.
How will this appear on bills?
Ratepayers will automatically see the lower rate reflected on electricity bills in the next billing cycle. The off-peak rate will be shown as the rate for all three TOU periods.
How long will this be in place?
It is the government’s intention that off-peak pricing for TOU customers will be in effect for 45 days.
How much will RPP customers save with this change?
The estimated impact on the average monthly residential bill is $16.13, or $24.20 over the 45-day period, but will depend on a customer’s total consumption and consumption behaviours.
The estimated impact on the average monthly small business bill, for RPP customers with a monthly consumption of 10,000 kWh could see a reduction of $308 on a monthly bill or $462 over the 45-day period.
Will tiered rate customers also be receiving the lower rate?
To quickly implement the pricing change so that it applies during the emergency response period, all TOU customers (including residential, farms and small businesses) would receive the pricing change. These are the customers that see the greatest increase in cost due to being home during the day.
Most Regulated Price Plan (RPP) consumers pay TOU prices, the rest of RPP customers pay tiered prices. There are approximately 5 million residential consumers, farms and some small businesses billed TOU electricity prices under the RPP.
This pricing change would not apply to RPP customers who pay tiered rates It would also not apply to consumers who have opted out of RPP to sign a contract with an electricity retailer.
Most importantly, North Bay Hydro is here to help. Customers that are experiencing hardship are encouraged to contact the team at customerservice@northbayhydro.com, or call 705-474-8100 and we will work with you to find a solution on flexible payment options.
My Account
We encourage customers to use North Bay Hydro’s online “My Account tool”, our secure and self-serve portal is available at www.northbayhydro.com which allows changes to your account, access to daily energy consumption information and more!
Bill payments can be completed through on-line or telebanking options with your bank provider, or our Customer Service Department can assist you with setting up pre-authorized payments.
Customer Service Department Phone: 705-474-8100
Customer Service Department Email: customerservice@northbayhydro.com
@NBHydro – Facebook | Outage News and Information
@NBHydro – Twitter | Outage News and Information
Letter From the President & CEO
March 17, 2020
Dear Customers/Stakeholders
Despite COVID-19 our values remain the same; Safety, Reliability, and Community
North Bay Hydro Distribution Limited’s (NBHDL) management team has been closely monitoring the evolution of the COVID-19 situation over the past number of weeks, with a focus on education, and the implementation of business continuity measures based on the recommendations of local, provincial, and federal health agencies. Understanding that the current risk of COVID-19 continues to be low, but rapidly changing, the health and safety of our community and team along with the reliability of the electrical system powering your homes and businesses remain our primary values.
In order to maintain those values and aid in mitigating the spread of COVID-19, NBHDL will be closing our office to customers indefinitely as of March 17, 2020. We fully understand the inconvenience this may create with respect to inquiries, payment, and other customer service activities however there are alternatives to visiting us that will allow customer interaction to continue.
- The customer service department will remain staffed and available by phone and email. For updates and information please follow us on our social media platforms, or visit our website.
- We encourage you to use the My Account tool, our secure and self-serve online tool available at www.northbayhydro.com.
- Bill payments can be completed through on-line or telebanking options with your bank provider, and pre-authorized payments can be set up by phone with NBHDL.
Most importantly, we encourage you to contact our Customer Service team through the channels listed below if you have any questions during this time.
Customer Service Department Phone: 705-474-8100
Customer Service Department Email: customerservice@northbayhydro.com
@NBHydro – Facebook | Outage News and Information
@NBHydro – Twitter | Outage News and Information
NBHDL also understands the potential for hardship that COVID-19 may create. Due to this, and true to our values of community and safety, we are committed to working with all customers through these challenging times with respect to payment options. If you are experiencing hardship, please contact the customer service department via phone and a representative will gladly assist you in finding a payment solution.
Also, effective March 17, 2020, we are invoking a number of internal processes to help mitigate the spread of COVID-19, ensure a safe work environment, and maintain the health and safety of our dedicated employees which include:
- All non-essential travel is prohibited
- All meetings to be held by teleconference or through web-based applications
- Questionnaires to be conducted before any required interaction with customers or third parties along with utilization of recommended personal protective equipment
- Social distancing where possible
- Quarantine protocols established and strictly enforced.
Lastly, we fully understand that the situation around COVID-19 is dynamic, with evolution of the virus occurring every hour, and therefore we will continue to monitor, educate and make interaction with local leaders and health agencies a top priority.
Thank you for your understanding, patience, and participation in the prevention of COVID-19.
Together we can do this, but only together. Community Power.
Matt Payne, P. Eng.
President and Chief Executive Officer
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