Regulatory Initiatives Archive

GENERAL RATE APPLICATIONS

2019 ACE Plan

2018 ACE Plan

Demand Side Management

In 2017 provincial government legislation changed Nova Scotia Power’s relationship with Efficiency Nova Scotia (ENS) and how electricity efficiency programs are funded.

ENS is now a franchise of the Government of Nova Scotia and will be operated for the next 10 years by the corporation Efficiency One, a new entity created from ENS. Efficiency One (E1) is now a public utility designated to provide Nova Scotia Power with “reasonably available, cost-effective” energy efficiency programming.

Nova Scotia Power is obligated under this legislation to negotiate a contract with Efficiency One for 2016-18 for the procurement of energy efficiency services and programming. Those costs are then passed along to customers through power rates.

Nova Scotia Power and E1 were unable to reach full agreement on a recommendation for DSM funding, so each party has separately filed their case with the Nova Scotia Energy Board. ENS has recommended spending approximately $40 million per year to save 133-136 gigawatt hours (GWh) per year. Nova Scotia Power has recommended spending approximately $22 million per year for energy savings of approximately 100 GWh.

A hearing before the Nova Scotia Energy Board is scheduled for June 15th, 2015. That’s when Nova Scotia Power will argue that the proposed Efficiency One plan is neither cost-effective nor affordable for customers when measured in context of the following:

  • Its plan recommends demand side management (DSM) spending that is among the highest in Canada on both a per-capita basis and a per-customer basis.
  • The level of DSM proposed by ENS is significantly more than required to avoid capacity outlays by Nova Scotia Power
  • Additional DSM is not needed during the current contract period for compliance with Nova Scotia’s Renewable Electricity Standards or to meet power system delivery.

Nova Scotia Power supports meaningful, affordable and cost-effective demand side management that will help to provide stable, predictable and affordable electricity prices for Nova Scotians. That’s why we are recommending a robust DSM plan that aligns with the Canadian average, and that is why we are investing up to $37 million over 10 years to finance energy efficiency upgrades for nearly 6,600 low income homeowners who heat with electricity.

Efficiency programming helps to avoid capital expenditures and is the right thing to do, but we can only support spending customer dollars on DSM at an affordable level.

A complete record of documents can be found on https://nserbt.ca under Matter M06733.
NS Power 2016-2018 DSM Plan EVIDENCE
2016-2018 DSM Plan - Board Order

2013 General Rate Application

May 8, 2012

June 25, 2013

July 23, 2013

September 7, 2012

2012 General Rate Application

May 13, 2011

September 19, 2013

November 29, 2013

Information Requests (IRs)

Avon

CA

EAC

HRM

Larkin

Liberal

Liberty

Multeese

NPB

NSDOE

SBA 

Synapse

Woolridge

Renewable to Retail

Renewable to Retail

New market will enable independent renewable energy producers to sell directly to retail customers.

In consultation with interested stakeholders, Nova Scotia Power has developed a framework to enable competitive renewable electricity supply to retail customers, in accordance with the provisions of the Electricity Reform Act (2013). This includes new and amended tariffs, procedures, and standards of conduct necessary to facilitate the sale and purchase of renewable low-impact energy. The hearing before the Nova Scotia Utility and Review Board was held in January and included input from a number of stakeholders interested in the opening of this new market. The board has reserved its decision.

Licensed retailers who enter this new market will use Nova Scotia Power’s systems to enable delivery of their renewable energy. To ensure continuous supply to the licensed retailers’ customers, Nova Scotia Power filed tariffs with the board that we believe reflect stakeholder input and meet provincial legislation.

Nova Scotia Power must provide a broad range of services to the licensed retailers, such as providing back-up and spill services when retailers aren’t providing enough energy to their customers or are over-producing. In accordance with provincial legislation, NSP has ensured mechanisms are in place to ensure customers who do not take up this service do not incur additional costs to provide this new service.

That legislation says retail suppliers and their customers are to be responsible for all costs related to the provision of this new service that would otherwise be the responsibility of Nova Scotia Power and its customers.

We will provide you with the latest updates on this market as the process unfolds.

Stakeholder Conference – September 11, 2015

Information Request (IR) Responses

Settlement Report

Rebuttal Evidence

Closing

Board Decision

Compliance Filing

Board Orders

Rate breakdown by customer class

Rate breakdown by customer class

We are in the process of updating this page with 2019 data. For the time being, please click here for the latest information.

 

fuels_a 

Bill amounts paid by individual customers may vary from the above benchmarks due to a difference in usage between the customer and its rate class average and difference between rate design and functional cost breakdown under the COSS for each class.

Generation

Generation is the process of producing electricity from sources of primary energy. It is the first stage in the provision of electricity to end users, the other stages being transmission, distribution, and retail.

  • The Generation-Fuel category reflects the cost of fuels burned in Nova Scotia Power's power plants to generate electricity, and the cost of purchasing electricity from independent power producers.
  • The Generation-Non-Fuel category reflects the fixed costs of generation, such as the depreciation of generation assets, financing costs, income tax, and operating, maintenance and general (OM&G) expenses. Further information on generation at Nova Scotia Power can be found here: "How we make electricity"

Transmission and Distribution

Transmission is the bulk movement of electricity from a power plant or other generating site to a substation, usually at a voltage of 69 kilovolts or above. Transmission equipment includes high voltage power lines, transmission poles and substations.

The Distribution system carries electricity from the transmission system to individual consumers. Distribution substations connect to the transmission system and reduce the electricity voltage to between 4 kilovolts and 25 kilovolts. Distribution equipment includes distribution substations, feeder lines, poles, transformers (which reduce voltage to what is required for customer use), service lines to individual customers, and electricity meters.

Transmission and Distribution costs include fixed costs such as depreciation, financing costs, income tax and OM&G. More information on transmission and distribution at Nova Scotia Power can be found here: "How we deliver electricity"

Retail

Retail costs include customer care services such as metering, billing, call centre, credit services, marketing and sales. Retail costs are primarily OM&G related.

Streetlight Fixture

These are costs of streetlight and area lights owned by Nova Scotia Power. They include maintenance and capital costs. These costs are entirely recovered from customers in the Unmetered rate class.

Cost of Service

2013 Cost of Service Study

INTEGRATED RESOURCE PLANS

2014 Integrated Resource Plan

Planning the future of electricity in Nova Scotia.

An Integrated Resource Plan, or IRP, is one way that power companies around the world plan for the future. Decisions are made about how to operate electricity systems over extended periods of time, like when and where to make investments in power plants, lines, and equipment. This kind of planning helps develop a long term approach to making the right kind and right amount of electricity Nova Scotians need at the lowest cost.

Currently, Nova Scotia Power is going through an integrated resource planning process to help plan the future of electricity in Nova Scotia. Like in many other jurisdictions, our regulator requires us to undertake such a process. We completed our last IRP in 2009. Since then, our province has seen many changes to the way electricity is made and used, including:

  • a significant increase in intermittent renewable energy like wind
  • reductions in industrial electricity use
  • stringent environmental requirements related to generating electricity

These and many other changes mean we need to re-examine the lowest cost options for generating the right amount of electricity, at the right time, into the future.

The IRP will help us review the current and future states of how electricity is generated, transmitted, distributed, and consumed in Nova Scotia, the influence of environmental regulations, and most of all, what’s affordable for customers.

An IRP requires input from more than just Nova Scotia Power and other industry experts. The IRP will be developed in consultation with our regulator, the Utility and Review Board, and many other stakeholders. But every Nova Scotian has a stake in our electricity future, and we’re interested in your input during this process.

Terms of Reference (TOR)

Draft Assumptions

Stakeholder Comments on Draft Assumptions

Additional Assumptions Detail

Final Assumptions

Stakeholder Comments on Final Assumptions

Additional Final Assumptions Detail

Modeling and Analysis Updates

Stakeholder Comments on Modeling and Anaylsis Updates

2014 IRP DRAFT Report

Stakeholder Comments on 2014 IRP DRAFT Report

2014 IRP Final Report

2006/2007 Integrated Resource Plan and 2009 Update

2006/2007 Plan

The Integrated Resource Plan (IRP) was developed during 2006 and 2007 through collaboration with the UARB and consultation with stakeholders.

The IRP is a resource plan which utilizes supply-side and demand-side options, to enable NS Power to meet future emissions and other requirements in a cost-effective and reliable manner. The planning horizon considered was 2007-2029. The IRP plan forms the foundation for the Company's future investment decisions.

The Final IRP Report with Recommendation was filed with the UARB in July 2007. Links to the 3 volumes that formed the IRP Final Report are provided below.

The report includes:

  • Background and the process overview
  • Criteria for the various plans developed
  • The load forecast of future supply requirements
  • Sets of alternative supply-side and DSM alternatives to meet future emissions and other requirements
  • Screening analysis to determine which alternatives are to be evaluated further as Plans in the IRP process.
  • Evaluation of alternative plans in order to determine the least cost plan.
  • Sensitivity analysis on the least cost plan and other selected plans to determine the robustness of the plans to variations in input assumptions.
  • Selection of recommended plan to meet future emission requirements.
  • Actions required over the next 3 to 5 years to meet load projections and other regulatory and environmental requirements.

The IRP analysis provides support that the Reference Plan, 5 percent DSM Plan with Renewables beyond the Nova Scotia Government's Renewable Portfolio Standard (RPS) should be the Preferred Plan.

The steps of the IRP Action Plan are:

  1. Nova Scotia Power will initiate the development of a comprehensive DSM program, aimed at realizing the potential indicated in the IRP analysis.
  2. Nova Scotia Power will continue to work with the stakeholders to complete the Wind Integration Study.
  3. Nova Scotia Power will apply to the UARB for approval to commence with economic capital programs necessary to optimize the capacity and environmental performance of its existing generation fleet.
  4. Nova Scotia Power will continue to actively monitor technology developments both with respect to low impact generation technologies and environmental retrofit technologies.
  5. Nova Scotia Power will continue to explore opportunities to obtain additional clean power sources from within and outside the province.
  6. Nova Scotia Power will continue to participate in the development of the Federal Emissions framework.

Nova Scotia Power plans to update the IRP analysis once information from DSM implementation and the wind integration study is available and further clarity on the emissions framework is obtained. A report to the UARB on the status of the items included in the Action Plan will be filed in approximately two years.

2009 IRP Update

Working towards a cleaner energy future for Nova Scotia Power requires a long-term plan for electricity generation.

Like many utilities in North America, NS Power uses an Integrated Resource Plan (IRP) as a forecasting and planning tool. The IRP is used by NS Power to produce long-term plans for meeting the electricity requirements of Nova Scotians.

The 2009 IRP Update uses a 25-year load forecast to model the long-term electricity demand for Nova Scotia. Based on these load forecasts, the IRP develops various scenarios to help NS Power determine the best way to meet that demand, in a cost-effective manner that is environmentally-compliant with Nova Scotia’s Renewable Energy Standard and emission regulations such as caps on carbon dioxide, sulphur dioxide, nitrogen oxide and mercury.

Nova Scotia Power has analyzed the results of the 2009 IRP and developed an updated IRP Action Plan. The IRP Action Plan identifies conservation and energy efficiency programs, additional renewables such as wind, hydro and biomass, and updates to existing energy generation facilities as important components for NS Power’s plans over the next 25 years.

ANNUAL CAPITAL EXPENDITURE (ACE) PLANS

2017 ACE Plan

The Annual Capital Expenditure (ACE) Plan details all of our major capital investment proposals. It is filed annually.

November 14, 2016

January 5, 2017

Responses to Information Requests:

2016 ACE Plan

2015 ACE Plan

The Annual Capital Expenditure (ACE) Plan details all of our major capital investment proposals. It is filed annually.

A complete record of documents can be found on https://nsuarb.novascotia.ca under Matter M06514.

November 6, 2014

November 17, 2014

Demand Side Management (DSM) Plans

DSM Plans

As of 2012, Efficiency Nova Scotia is responsible for filing and administering annual DSM Plans.

Collaborative Report