Nelson Hydro Services Bylaw

On January 1, 2025 the new Nelson Hydro Services Bylaw takes effect. There have been many changes since it was last updated in 2012 to how Nelson Hydro delivers service; technologies, equipment, codes and standards, materials, and staff costs.

On June 20th, 2024 Nelson Hydro hosted an open house to share the proposed updates to the bylaw with the public. It was well attended and several clarifications to the bylaw were made as a result of feedback received. BCUC and City Council approved the changes in October 2024.

Overall changes and clarification to the bylaw include:

Improved organization and flow of the document.
Incorporation of fees (billing, meters, rates, etc.) previously found in another separate bylaw for simplification.
Differences between urban and rural fees as there are differences in travel time for both staff and vehicle rates.
Increased fees and charges to align with current staff hourly rates, blue book vehicle rates, and meter costs.
Clarification on landlord-tenant relationships.
New sections for line sharing, system improvements, and service extensions.
48 new terms and definitions.

Changes to Fees, Charges and Rates

New Fees: Data Request, Solar Garden Admin, Proof of Notification for Statutory Right-of-Way, Meter Inspection Fee, Meter Install Fee, System Improvement Fee, >400amp Meter Wiring Fee, and Underground Incentive Credit. (Schedule D and E)
Fees and Charges will increase annually with the same percentage as the general rate increases. (Schedule D and E)
Rate service descriptions were updated for clarity. (Schedule D and E)
Power Factor was added to Commercial Rates. (Schedule D and E)
'General Service' rate name was changed to 'Large Commercial'. (Schedule D and E)
LED rates were added to Urban and Rural Streetlights. (Schedule D and E)
Added EV Charging Rate for Urban Only ($/min). (Schedule D and E)
Nelson Hydro can change customer rates based on customer consumption levels. (Section 7.1.2)
Parts or all of security deposit will be applied to unpaid balances at move-out or when the account is closed. (Section 7.7.7)

Changes to Landlord and Tenant

Clarification that security deposits will be required of all tenants (Section 7.7.1) unless the landlord waives this requirement in writing (Section 7.7.2)
Change to the period for which security deposits are held. (Section 7.7.6)
Addition of language allowing Nelson Hydro to transfer outstanding balances from closed accounts to new accounts in the same name. (Section 7.6.1)
Clarification that the account will revert to the landlord if the rental property is vacant. (Section 7.10)
Addition of the requirement to permanently and legibly label electrical services where more than one exists at an address. (Section 4.11)

Changes to Meters

All meters after the point of delivery (also known as sub-metering) are the responsibility of the Customer and must comply with Technical Safety BC and Measurement Canada requirements. (Section 6.3)
When customers are concerned their meter read is incorrect, new fees apply for a meter inspection. These fees will be credited if a problem is found. (Schedule D and E)
Meters will be removed from the service for accounts that have been inactive for more than 1 year. (Section 6.12)
Unmetered services can be changed to metered services at the sole discretion of Nelson Hydro. (Section 6.8)
New Section on Distributed Generation and Net Metering. (Section 3.9)
Addition of the requirement to permanently and legibly label electrical services where more than one exists at an address. (Section 4.11)

Contractors

If you are an electrical contractor performing work for a Nelson Hydro customer, here are the key changes to be aware of:

A new option exists to have a 320amp underground or overhead service. (Schedule D and E)
Wiring for meters for services larger than 320amp will be charged actual cost. (Schedule D and E)
System improvements were clarified (Section 4.7) and improvement fees will be charged at actual cost (Schedule D and E).
New Section on Distributed Generation and Net Metering. (Section 3.9)
All three-phase customer loads must be designed to prevent the load on the phase with the highest load exceeding that on the phase with the lowest load by more than 5%. (Section 4.4.12.f)
Service Extension or Line Sharing clarifications. (Section 4.6.16)
The maximum amount of electrical services per property is 1. (Section 4.11)

Residential Customers

If you are a residential customer, here are the key changes to be aware of:

Solar Garden Program has been added to the bylaw (Section 4.14). Changes to Solar Garden accounts will be charged a $25 administration fee (Schedule D and E).
$23 per account for data requests. (Schedule D and E) Note: data downloads are free with online billing.
Increased fees for move-in/move-outs and reconnecting meters. (Schedule D and E)
A $400 underground incentive credit will be applied to customer's invoice who are installing a new underground service or modifying an existing overhead electrical service to underground. (Schedule D and E)
For rural customers having Statutory Rights-of-Way services, new fees are being passed through from the province for 'Proof of Notification'. (Schedule D and E)

Commercial Customers

If you are a commercial customer, here are the key changes to be aware of:

Multi-unit building meter installations more than or equal to 5 meters will be charged on a time and materials basis. (Schedule D and E)
Installation of an electrical service of more than 120-240V single phase will be charged on a time and materials basis. (Schedule D and E)
Customers must post a schematic of the electrical system beside or near their electrical service entry point to assist with emergency response. (Section 4.3.12)
Power Factor may be charged to your bill if your average power factor drops below 90%. Customers are required to keep it at 90%. The charges are proportionate to how much the power factor drops below 90%. (Section 4.9)
New section on the customer's primary voltage equipment. (Section 3.8)
Clarifications for Load Fluctuations. (Section 4.10)