OTTAWA, Feb. 23, 2015 /CNW/ - Hydro Ottawa has launched a website and online survey to seek input from its customers on a five-year distribution plan that will help determine the company's priorities and rates between 2016 and 2020.
The customer consultation is designed to collect consumer feedback on the reliability of Ottawa's electricity distribution system and the spending decisions Hydro Ottawa will make over the next five years.
The plan highlights major issues the utility is looking to address, including:
- Replacing aging infrastructure past the anticipated end-of-life, with some more than 50 years old;
- Serving a growing city and population, including building infrastructure needed to serve new communities, intensification projects and the Light Rail Transit project;
- Improving the power system with targeted investments that will restore outages more quickly and/or remotely; and
- Refurbishing and replacing costly facilities and equipment.
All feedback collected will be included with the utility's application to its regulator, the Ontario Energy Board, as part of the rate setting process. Focus groups and telephone surveys are also being conducted.
To encourage maximum participation, customers who complete the survey will be eligible to win one of three Apple iPad tablets.
To learn more about Hydro Ottawa's five-year plan and to complete the online survey, please visit www.hydroottawa.com/survey.
Quick Facts
- Hydro Ottawa bills customers and collects payments, but only keeps about 20 percent of what the customer pays. The other 80 percent is passed on, without mark-up, to other companies responsible for generating electricity, transmitting it, and to regulators and the provincial government.
- Hydro Ottawa's distribution rates must be approved by the Ontario Energy Board based on applications by the utility. The rate setting process is open and transparent, with opportunities for public participation.
- Hydro Ottawa must submit evidence to demonstrate the amount of funding it needs to safely and reliably distribute electricity to its customers.
Quotes
"We believe our customers should have access to reliable electricity at reasonable rates. We've based our five-year plans on that belief, using the best available evidence to make our application as thoughtful and balanced as possible. With the customer at the centre of everything we do, it's important for us to ensure the health and future reliability of Ottawa's electricity system, and also minimize cost impacts to our customers."
- Bryce Conrad, President and Chief Executive Officer
About Hydro Ottawa
Hydro Ottawa's core businesses are delivering electricity, generating renewable power and providing energy conservation/management services. Hydro Ottawa is a community-owned, private company, delivering electricity to more than 319,500 customers in Ottawa and Casselman. It is the largest municipally-owned producer of green power in the province, with hydroelectric and landfill gas-to-energy generating facilities. Hydro Ottawa Holding Inc. (Hydro Ottawa) owns and operates two subsidiary companies, Hydro Ottawa Limited and Energy Ottawa Inc.
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SOURCE Hydro Ottawa Holding Inc.
Rebecca Hickey, Supervisor, Media and Public Affairs, Hydro Ottawa, Tel: 613-738-5499 ext. 345, [email protected];
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