Gas, electric, wind energy rates set for August

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Medicine Hat - The City of Medicine Hat has set its August energy commodity rates.

Natural Gas – all customers

The August natural gas default rate is $0.912 per gigajoule (GJ), up from the previous month of $0.770 per GJ.

On Nov. 20, 2023, City Council passed bylaw 4798 that amends the gas utility bylaw in order to provide consumers with a single natural gas rate starting Jan. 1, 2024. The rate is based on the weighted average cost of the City’s natural gas purchases for the month of consumption, plus $0.07/GJ to recover transactional costs and a small rate of return.

Electricity

Residential, Farm, Small and Medium Commercial, Unmetered Services and Rental Lighting

On Oct. 16, 2023, City Council passed an amendment to the Electric Utility Bylaw 2244 to establish a single best-of-market electricity rate for Residential, Farm, Small and Medium Commercial, Unmetered Services and Rental Lighting customers, not to exceed a maximum of 11 cents per kilowatt hour (kWh) or go below a minimum rate of seven cents per kWh. The rate is based on a twelve-month, volume weighted forecast as per the ICE-NGX wholesale electricity energy market and will be recalculated on the first business day of January, April, July, and October.

The current best of market rate is $0.05680 per kWh which, under the bylaw, defaults to the minimum $0.07000 per kWh for Residential, Farm, Small and Medium Commercial, Unmetered Services and Rental Lighting customers.  

On December 15, 2022, the Government of Alberta passed The Regulated Rate Option Stability Act through Bill 2: Inflation Relief Statutes Amendment Act which placed a temporary price ceiling of $0.13500 per kilowatt hour in January, February and March 2023 for Albertans who purchase power on the Regulated Rate Option (RRO). As of April 1, 2023, the cost difference between the RRO electricity rate from January to March 2023 and the temporary price ceiling will be added to the current default rate to recover costs until December 2024.

The August recovery rate of $0.00705 per kWh will be added to the current default rate of $0.07000 per kWh for a total billable rate of $0.07705 per kWh, down from the previous month of $0.07842 per kWh for July. For more details about the recovery rate, visit medicinehat.ca/EnergyPlans.

August 2024 (per kilowatt hour)Rate per kWh
Default City of Medicine Hat electricity rate $0.07000
+ City of Medicine Hat recovery rate + $0.00705
City of Medicine Hat billed rate $0.07705

 

Large Commercial, Industrial and Street Lighting Customers

The August default electricity rate for Large Commercial, Industrial and Street Lighting customers is $0.09884 per kilowatt hour. The rate is based on the average of the rates for owners whose regulated rate tariffs are approved by the Alberta Utilities Commission under section 103(2) of the Electric Utilities Act for that calendar month as posted by the Alberta Utilities Commission on its internet page under Regulated Rate Option Regulation.

August 2024 (per kilowatt hour)Rate per kWh
Direct Energy Regulated Services $0.10055
ENMAX Energy Corporation $0.09495
EPCOR Energy Alberta GP (Edmonton) $0.10064
EPCOR Energy Alberta GP (outside Edmonton) $0.09923
City of Medicine Hat default rate for LC&I (based on the average) $0.09884

Going Green Charge

Customers also have a “Going Green” surcharge on their bill. This surcharge is for renewable energy purchased for residential, farm, small and medium commercial customers.

The Going Green surcharge is calculated monthly to recover costs incurred to purchase renewable energy.

The Going Green surcharge for August is $0.0035 per kilowatt hour.

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Media inquiries:
media@medicinehat.ca