Seasonal rates are ending

Information for Urban-Density customers

Our regulator, the Ontario Energy Board (OEB), has directed us to end seasonal rates on December 31, 2022, and move our seasonal customers into one of three density-based residential rate classes, effective January 1, 2023.

The decision to end seasonal rates was based on the OEB’s determination that delivery rates charged to seasonal customers are subsidized by other customers and don’t reflect the actual cost to serve them.

How we assign rate classes

We have three density-based residential rate classes that are set by the OEB:

Urban Density

Areas that have a cluster of 3,000 or more customers, with at least 60 customers for every km of power line.

Medium Density

Areas that have a cluster of 100 or more customers, with at least 15 customers for every km of power line.

Low Density

Areas that have a cluster of fewer than 100 customers with less than 15 customers per km of power line.

It costs less to deliver electricity to customers who live in urban density areas as less infrastructure is needed (poles, power lines, transformers, etc.). For example, if there are 150 customers per km of power line, compared to 10 customers per km of power line, the costs are shared by more customers and therefore each customer pays less.

photo of a man and woman sitting on the front porch of their rustic cabin in the summer

How the move to Residential Urban Density affects you

The move to Residential Urban Density means you will see a decrease in delivery rates that better reflects the costs to provide electricity to your property. The amount your bill will change depends on how much electricity you use.

The table below provides estimated monthly bill impacts based on different usage levels for a customer on time-of-use pricing.

Monthly use	2022 Monthly Total Bill	Estimated 2023 Monthly Total Bill	Estimated 2023 Monthly Savings
0 kWh	$62	$41	$21
50 kWh	$69	$47	$22
100 kWh	$77	$53	$24
250 kWh	$101	$72	$29
350 kWh	$116	$84	$32
400 kWh	$124	$91	$33
500 kWh	$140	$104	$36
750 kWh	$179	$135	$44
1,000 kWh	$218	$166	$52
1,250 kWh	$257	$197	$60
1,500 kWh	$296	$228	$68

How are delivery rates changing?

Delivery Rates	Seasonal Effective: Jan 1/22	Residential Urban Density (Seasonal) Effective: Jan 1/23
Monthly service charge ($/month)*	$60.22	$39.78
Distribution volume charge (cents/kWh)**	3.11 cents	N/A
Credit adjustment (cents/kWh)	N/A	0.07 cents
Smart meter entity charge ($/month)***	$0.43	$0.42
Transmission rates – network (cents/kWh)	0.81 cents	1.20 cents
Transmission rates – connection (cents/kWh)	0.64 cents	0.83 cents

* Includes a cost adjustment (also known as a rate rider) applied to the monthly service charge for both 2022 and 2023.
** Includes credit adjustments applied to distribution volume charge for 2023.
***Collected on behalf of the Independent Electricity System Operator (IESO).

Frequently Asked Questions

Why is the OEB eliminating seasonal rates?

The OEB decided that the delivery rates charged to seasonal customers are subsidized by other customers and don’t reflect the actual cost to serve them.

Read the OEB's Decision here. To learn more about seasonal rates ending, visit the OEB’s website.

Is Hydro One making more money because of seasonal rates ending?

We won’t make any additional revenue from ending seasonal rates. This change only impacts how overall costs are recovered between residential customers.

Will this change be retroactive?

The OEB has directed us to implement this change on a going forward basis as of January 1, 2023.

Will my billing frequency change?

Most seasonal customers are currently billed quarterly. We’ll continue to bill seasonal customers on a quarterly basis. If you prefer to receive a monthly bill, you may sign up for our budget billing program.

How did you decide my rate class is Urban Density?

We confirmed the location of your seasonal property and compared it with the number of customers who are near you and the power lines and other equipment that deliver power to you.
We counted the number of electricity customers within your community or area, and length of power lines serving that area. We then follow the OEB’s criteria for Urban, Medium, or Low Density, to finalize your rate classification.

How is the density review done?

We use our geographic information system (GIS) to identify and mark the boundaries of core clusters of customers.
Once density zone boundaries are marked, we extended out the customer cluster boundary in all directions to easily identifiable physical or geographical boundaries (such as roads, railways, rivers, lakes) or non-physical boundaries identifiable within the GIS system (such as property lines), where physical boundaries are remotely located from customer clusters.
Customer clusters located close to each other are combined into a larger, single density zone.
We map the kilometre of power line within a proposed density zone boundary and calculate the number of customers per kilometre of power line. Based on this we can confirm the correct rate class for customers located in the density zone boundary.

Why are you showing my line items twice on my bill?

As your rate class has changed, we need to calculate your Delivery charges using Urban Density rates for any usage on and after January 1, 2023. Your Delivery charges shown on page 3 are calculated using Seasonal rates for any usage incurred in 2022.

Learn about the fixed and variable charges on your bill

Infographic showing the difference between fixed and variable charges on a Hydro One electricity bill

Our Conditions of Service are changing January 1, 2023

To learn about the changes, click here on or after January 1, 2023.

Learn More

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