Energy Minister Glenn Thibeault has only been the Energy Minister for just over two months, but he knew the job would bring some heat with it. Considering the province currently has the highest hydro prices in North America.
A recent Ontario Energy Board report indicated thousands of North Bay residents are falling behind on their hydro bills.
Thibeault understands people’s concerns, he’s the MPP for Sudbury after all. So when he was asked yesterday in North Bay about a solution, Thibeault said it isn’t a simple fix.
Thibeault described the energy system as a rubix cube, where if he says he’s going to lower rates for small business, then he turns the top part of the Rubik’s Cube and would have to increase rates for residential customers and industrial customers. If he says he’s going to do something for industrial customers then other rates would go up.
Thibeault says he believes a good first step for his office is getting the word out about programs available to residents and small businesses to lower their bills. Thibeault used the Copper Cliff Curling club in Sudbury as an example of a business that was able to slash its hydro bill from $10,000 to $2,000 after using the Save On Energy Program.
