Electricity Prices for Toronto Residential Customers

• 5.0¢ per kWh for the first 1,000 kWh per month, then 5.9¢/kWh for remaining use.
• These prices are set until April 30th 2008, but are not fixed prices. If it's a cold winter and the utility has to pay more for electricity, the deficit will be built into the next price change.
• To compare fixed price contracts to the RPP, subtract about 1¢/kWh from the contract prices for the rebates that you will receive.
• Did you sign a contract back in 2002?

Supplier 1 Yr. Fixed 2 Yr. Fixed 4 Yr. Fixed 5 Yr. Fixed Features Signup Canada Energy -- -- -- 7.89 full requirements price of 7.89¢/kWh Direct Energy -- 6.99 -- 8.99 -green power plan 8.99 ¢/kWh 2 yrs (possible extention to 5 yrs) rebates assigned to supplier-offer available to new non-Direct Energy Customers Universal Power -- -- -- 8.4333 7.64¢/kWh until Oct. 31st, 2008 and then 8.49¢//kWh for the remaining years. $25.00 Free Energy Bullfrog Power 8.9 -- -- -- Green Power at 8.9 cents/Supplier keeps rebates -- Ontario Energy Savings L.P Elect. -- -- 8.58 8.58 Green power available too -- Superior Energy Management. -- -- -- 8.95 -- --

By default, we sort the suppliers above by who's signed up on Energyshop.com. The most popular term right now is 5 years.

Looking for the utility rates? If they're available, you can find them further down the page under the heading “Regulated Rates”.

Disclaimer: Energyshop researches prices and provides them on a best efforts basis and is not responsible for discrepancies.

Read contracts carefully. The small print in different contracts varies quite a bit. Some types of wording can affect price. Canadian Hydro, Direct Energy and Firefly are full requirements, fixed price contracts. You will be charged the contract price regardless of the amount you use and there are no adjustments. OESC, Universal and Summitt have an adjustment if electricity use is not exactly the same as historical use in total by the customers with whom you've been grouped. This adjustment maybe be up or down, depending on market prices and how the marketer has purchased blocks of electricity, but it is impossible to predict.

Where the supplier has temporary price discounts or reductions, we have calculated a weighted average to make cost comparison easier.

What are "green" and "brown" power?

The term "green power" refers to electricity created from renewable energy sources, such as solar, wind, geothermal, some hydropower, and biomass. "Brown power" refers to power generated using traditional fossil fuels and nuclear energy.

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• What are the Ontario spot rates? Spot market rate
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What Makes Up an Electricity Bill

Deciding on that deregulated portion

Marketer prices only cover the electricity supply cost. The other charges, Transmission, Debt Retirement and System Operation charges, will be charged by your utility at the regulated rate regardless of who you choose as your electricity supplier. The portion of your bill over which you have choice is about 60% of the total charge per kilowatt hour. That 60% goes to whomever you choose to supply your electricity. Remember this split when comparing costs. When a promotional message claims a 10% saving, it is referring to 10% of the 60% over which you have choice.

Comparing with your current electricity bill

It's very difficult for several reasons. If you stay with your utility, you will pay, per kWh, the average spot market price over the first year, based on the Net System Load Shape (NSLS) for your utility. The NSLS is the profile (hourly use through the year) of the total of all electricity users in your utility purchasing from the utility, who do not have an interval meter. The spot market changes every hour. That has to be compared to a fixed rate, fixed term contract.

Comparing and deciding among the various offers

You have 2 fundamental choices; to stay with the utility and pay a variable rate, or go with a deregulated energy marketer and choose between their array of choices. You'll see fixed or variable contracts, terms between 1 and 5 years and possibly other incentives such as air miles or a free month of electricity. This decision depends on your budget, and whether you expect electricity prices to go up or down.

Regulated rates are not fixed rates, nor can they be

In Ontario, the Ontario Energy Board regulates utility rates. Utilities can't offer fixed contracts; only marketers can. If you are a designated consumer, which includes homeowners, the utility will charge you a set rate for a period of time. This is called the Regulated Price Plan RPP (currently for 1 year, but changing to 6 months on May 1/06). As a residential consumer you can opt out of the RPP and pay the monthly spot price instead. Or you can sign a longer term contract with a marketer. The reason you would sign a contract would be to avoid regulated rate changes in the future.

Regulated Price Plan (RPP) Settlement

If you sign an electricity contract in Ontario you will be subject to RPP Settlement. The regulated price plan, which you were on, is mean to smooth out the volatile market rates by setting the price for 6 months. However, if market prices are higher (or lower) than the RPP rate a varinace account accumulates. When you leave the RPP for a contract, you will be charge for, or credited with, your portion of that account.

Find out the carbon dioxide (CO₂) emissions electricity use causes.

If you've seen a price from a marketer that is different from the list above, and would like to report the price to Energyshop.com so others can make an informed purchasing decision, enter it below. All comments are welcome.