Can I choose who provides my electricity to my home or business?
What is a regulated rate provider?
What is a competitive retailer?
Where can I learn more about my options and choices?
Who approves the regulated electricity rate?
Why do the rates go up?
Where does Alberta electricity come from?
What investment does Alberta have in new generation?

Can I choose who provides my electric energy to my home or business?
Yes, Albertans are no longer tied to a particular provider because of where they live or operate a business. While the company that delivers your electricity will continue to operate and maintain the wires providing your power, you can decide who supplies you the electric energy.

Alberta’s electricity market offers retail choice to consumers.  Albertans who wish to receive service under regulated rates that reflect wholesale competitive market prices can continue to receive regulated service.  Those consumers seeking price stability may choose to receive service through a fixed-rate contract with a licensed retailer.  Businesses and homeowners can comparison shop between the innovative and competitively priced energy options that retail competition encourages companies to develop and offer to customers. For more information on the retail options available, visit http://www.ucahelps.gov.ab.ca/. 

What is a regulated rate provider?
Regulated rate providers offer consumers electricity rates that are reviewed by the Alberta Utilities Commission (AUC).  The AUC regulates investor-owned utilities as well as the RRO tariffs for the cities of Calgary and Edmonton. Other municipally owned utilities (Red Deer, Lethbridge, Cardston, Fort MacLeod, Ponoka and Crowsnest Pass) are currently regulated by their City Councils. For the Rural Electrification Associations (REA), each REA’s board of directors approves the RRO rates.

What is a competitive retailer?
Alberta's retail electricity market gives consumers a choice of service providers. More than 20 companies are currently competing to sell power to the province's larger commercial and industrial users, who account for roughly two-thirds of all electricity usage in Alberta. With the continued development of the retail market more retail options will be available to smaller consumers such as residential, farm and small commercial customers. More information about Alberta's restructured and competitive electricity marketplace is available at http://www.ucahelps.gov.ab.ca/.  

Competitive retailers offer energy and other services to consumers in most areas of Alberta.

There are many factors to consider when choosing a competitive retailer. They include: price, signing incentives, contract length, cancellation penalties, payment plans – and even the availability of alternative energy sources.

Where can I learn more about my options and choices?
To learn more about the emerging electricity marketplace and the choices that Albertans can now make regarding their electric services, you are encouraged to visit http://www.ucahelps.gov.ab.ca/.

Who approves the regulated electricity rate?
RRO providers will submit their regulated rate proposals to the appropriate regulatory body for approval. The Alberta Utilities Commission (AUC) regulates investor-owned utilities and approves RRO tariffs for the cities of Calgary and Edmonton. Other municipally owned utilities (Red Deer, Lethbridge, Cardston, Fort MacLeod, Ponoka and Crowsnest Pass) are currently regulated by their City Councils. For the Rural Electrification Associations (REA), each REA’s board of directors approves the RRO rates.

Why do the rates go up?
The energy charges on your bills reflect the many ways that wholesalers can buy electricity in the wholesale market – a combination of short-term and long term pricing.  The price of the electricity will often change when the price of natural gas changes, because Alberta has a lot of power generation that relies on natural gas as the fuel source.  This may mean that when natural gas prices rise, so will electricity.  As we have seen, however, when the natural gas prices fall, electricity prices tend to fall also. Electricity rates are tending to increase across Canada, as demand for energy increases.

Where does Alberta electricity come from?
The electricity that turns your lights on in your house is made by using an energy source, such as coal or natural gas, to fire a generator, which converts it into electricity. Almost half of the electricity in Alberta is generated through coal-fired generators, with an increasing number of generators being fuelled by natural gas. Renewable plants, such as hydro, biomass and wind-powered, generate the remainder of our supply.

Each province uses a different mix of generation methods. The costs associated with each method can vary greatly, resulting in different prices across jurisdictions.

While hydro is one of the cheapest forms of energy and accounts for over 60 per cent of the total electricity produced in Canada; it's a different story in Alberta. Here, energy is primarily in the form of coal or natural gas to make energy.

What investment does Alberta have in new generation?

New generation investment in Alberta has kept pace with the needs of one of the fastest growing economies in North America. We have benefited from almost 4,400 megawatts (MW) of new generation since 1998.  In addition, generation from renewable sources, including hydro, wind and biomass (wood), has increased by over 500MW since 1998.