Industrial electrification rates
Discounted rates to connect to BC Hydro's grid
Maximum participation reached
Aug 10, 2023 – Based on applications received to date, we expect that the aggregate energy cap of 5,000 GWh for the CleanBC Industrial Electrification Rates will be reached. Any new applications will be placed on a waitlist should previously approved projects not proceed. Prospective customers should not rely on availability of these discounted rates as they make their investment decisions. If you've already applied, we'll review your application and contact you with next steps.
To discuss other potential funding opportunities to support your electrification projects, please contact our team.
The CleanBC Industrial Electrification Rates are intended to help existing and new industrial customers connect to BC Hydro’s grid by offering discounted rates to encourage the use of clean electricity.
There are two categories of rates available to our transmission service customers:
- Clean Industry and Innovation Rate (Rate Schedule 1894)
- Fuel Switching Rate (Rate Schedule 1895)
Both rates offer a discount from the standard transmission service rate on both the energy charge and demand charge for a period of seven years:
- First five years: 20%
- Year six: 13%
- Year seven: 7%
These rates are available to customers until March 31, 2030. The rates will expire on March 31, 2037 at which time, customers will be moved to a standard transmission service rate. There is an energy cap of 5,000 gigawatt hours (GWh) a year for all customers under these rates, of which 1,500 GWh/year is allocated to customers under the Clean Industry and Innovation Rate and 3,500 GWh/year to customers under the Fuel Switching Rate. BC Hydro may assess and adjust the energy participation cap, as needed.
To learn more, contact your Key Account Manager. If you're a new BC Hydro customer, contact our Business & Economic Development team.
Clean Industry and Innovation Rate
The Clean Industry and Innovation Rate (Rate Schedule 1894) is to help support and attract new, innovative industries to B.C. by making it more affordable to connect into BC Hydro’s grid. The rate is available to two types of new customer plants:
- Clean industry customer: A new customer plant that uses a process to remove greenhouse gases from the atmosphere or produces a renewable or low carbon fuel. This could include the production of hydrogen via electrolysis; the production of synthetic fuels from hydrogen, carbon dioxide or biomass; or the capture and/or storage of carbon dioxide.
- Innovation customer: A new customer plant that is a data centre composed of networked computers and data storage used to organize, process, store and disseminate large amounts of data. To be eligible, a customer’s contract demand in its Electricity Supply Agreement must be greater than 10,000 kilovolts amperes (kVA) and the plant must not be used for producing or exchanging cryptocurrency. In addition, the plant’s annual energy consumption must be greater than 70 GWh/year.
Eligibility
- Customers that use electricity to process the removal of greenhouse gases from the atmosphere, including the capture and/or storage of carbon dioxide.
- Customers that produce hydrogen using electricity as a fuel source or produces synthetic fuels from hydrogen, carbon dioxide or biomass.
- Customers that set up a new data centre that organizes, processes, stores and disseminates large amounts of data.
- The Clean Industry and Innovation Rate is not available to projects that produce or exchange cryptocurrency.
- Innovation customers must use a minimum of 70 GWh/year and 10,000 kVA.
Fuel Switching Rate
The Fuel Switching Rate (Rate Schedule 1895) is designed to encourage existing and new industrial customers to electrify their operations by connecting into BC Hydro’s grid, instead of relying on fossil fuels. This rate is available to a broad range of customers, including new customers who can demonstrate that by connecting to the grid it will reduce greenhouse gas emissions. The rate is also available to existing customers that modify or expand their plant to take additional electricity supplied by BC Hydro, thereby eliminating or reducing fossil fuel use for their power supply.
An annual assessment will be undertaken to determine the amount of load that should be served under this rate schedule. The new load associated with a fuel switch project must be at least 20 GWh/yr. The discount will only apply to the fuel switch portion of the customer load. Customer baselines will be required where a customer takes service under both Rate Schedule 1895 (for the fuel switch load) and Rate Schedule 1823 (for the balance of plant load).
Eligibility
- A new customer plant where there was a viable alternative to power operations using fossil fuels but instead the customer designed the plant to be powered by electricity supplied by BC Hydro.
- An existing customer that permanently modifies their operating plant to switch from being powered by fossil fuel to electricity supplied by BC Hydro.
- An existing distribution service customer that permanently modifies their operating plant to take electricity supply from BC Hydro at 60 kilovolt (kV) as an alternative to powering their operations with fossil fuel.
- An existing customer that designs their expansion project to take the incremental electricity supply from BC Hydro as an alternative to powering their expansion project with fossil fuel.
- An existing customer that permanently modifies their equipment from being powered by fossil fuel to electricity supplied by BC Hydro.
- The Fuel Switching Rate is not available to oil transportation pipelines, oil refineries, methanol production and natural gas liquefaction facilities.
- The fuel switch portion of a customer’s project must result in an increase in electrical energy consumption of at least 20 GWh/year.
Please note that in the event of differences between the details noted here and the official Electric Tariff issued by BC Hydro, the official Electric Tariff will be deemed correct.