January 26, 2016 – In late December the Chamber wrote a “WE COULD USE YOUR HELP” letter to over 100 businesses in Oshawa asking for their assistance in recouping some of the legal fees incurred from its intervention in the rate increase hearings. The majority of the legal fees have been covered from the OEB and Aird & Berlis, however the Chamber was short about $4,000.
The Chamber’s intervention ensured the interests of the business users of electricity were fully represented over the 2015-2019 period if the application was approved.
The Chamber was pleased to report in the January issue of Business Matters that, after a preliminary analysis, our legal council noted two positive ways the Chamber’s participation in the hearing had an impact.
First – The overall revenue that the OPUC said it would require over the five years decreased by about $3.6 million for all customers and an additional $1.8 million in savings from revenue that OPUC did not recover because they were so late in the application. So that is a savings of almost $5.5 million in total for all ratepayers.
Second – The increase in the total bill in the rate 50 to 999kw class over the five years averages annually 1.6% over the 5 years down significantly from the initial proposal by the OPUC of 6.5% annually. Unfortunately, there is a significant increase in the distribution element of the bill in 2016.
The Chamber would like to acknowledge the following businesses that have stepped up and assisted the Chamber’s Policy Advocacy Committee to date:
A BIG Thank You to:
• AGS Automotive Systems,
• CRCS DKI,
• Halenda’s Fine Foods,
• Peacock Lumber,
• Stone River Windows & Doors, and
• Syvan Developments Ltd.
And remember it’s not too late to participate!
If you feel you’re business benefited and you appreciate the Chamber’s advocacy on behalf of the business community and would like to assist your Chamber in defraying the costs, please contact Bob Malcolmson at 905.728.1683 or email [email protected]. A pledge of $100, $200, $400 or any amount will help.
