Thursday, April 17, 2008
Rate increase coming from Hydro
Government should absorb any further electricity charges to consumers
Media release
Conception Bay South, NL, April 17, 2008- Consumers in this province should not have to face the heavy financial burden being placed on them with the prospects of higher electricity bills in the coming weeks.
“Consumers in Newfoundland and Labrador are facing a double whammy in higher electricity charges at the same time as getting hit with higher heating and stove oil pricing. To be hit with these costs and get hit with higher electricity costs as a result of higher crude oil pricing seems to be a little asinine in the least, knowing that the province is making huge royalties from offshore oil,” said George Murphy, group researcher with the Consumer Group for Fair Gas Prices.
“Government should take immediate steps to allow Hydro to absorb the higher crude acquisition costs and insulate the Newfoundland and Labrador consumer from these costs. With close to a billion dollars in the treasury from oil royalties this year, it is entirely within the realm of government to do this. The Newfoundland and Labrador consumer owns Newfoundland and Labrador Hydro and should be able to get government to call the shot on this latest increase on their behalf. This time, the government can say ‘no’.
“Labrador residents particularly will be hard hit knowing that the Labrador winter is longer and colder. Electricity users along coastal Labrador, where electricity is generated by diesel, will be particularly hard hit. Government should do the right thing and prevent consumers from paying more as a result of something they have the power to help us avoid. The government should also be taking the concrete steps in getting coastal regions of Labrador wired into the provincial energy plan thusly removing them from wild swings in pricing caused by oil-generation of electricity.”
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For more information, contact;
George Murphy
Group researcher/Member
Consumer Group for Fair Gas Prices
gasprices@hotmail.com
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1 comment:
Nice Blog and I agree with your article. The cost of living is skyrocketing in Newfoundland and Labrador. Low to middle income people are moving out of the province because they cannot afford to live here. The majority of NL taxpayers fall into this category. Paying down the debt will never work if there is not a tax base left to pick up the bill when the oil runs out.
The wealth of our energy resources - oil and proceeds from the Lower Churchill, (most economical to sell to the US). Should be used to build wind farms and increased hydro production on a massive scale (Its a good thing we still own NF Hydro). The price of electricity should be greatly subsidized by these revenues so that everybody in the province can benefit and be able to afford to live here. Subsidizing or lowering taxes on fossil fuels is like burning money, only the oil companies benefit in the long run. People that burn oil can cheaply convert to electricity and with todays technology there are ways to spread out peak usage on a power grid.
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