Hay River prepares for switch from Naka Power to NTPC

The NWT Power Corporation and Naka Power have begun telling Hay River residents what to expect when NTPC takes over as the town’s power distributor on March 1.

Scheduled power outages are expected in the days ahead as the two power companies make necessary preparations – and as the Taltson hydro plant comes back online after almost two years out of service.

An outage affecting Hay River, Kátł’odeeche First Nation and Enterprise is scheduled for 8-10am on Monday, Naka Power said. NTPC said it plans a separate set of two outages, each lasting less than 30 minutes, in Hay River and Fort Smith on Monday afternoon.

In KFN, another outage is planned by Naka Power from 2-5pm on Wednesday.

The switch from Naka Power to NTPC is more than a decade in the making.

In December 2014, the Town of Hay River set off what turned out to be a 10-year process by declining to renew its distribution agreement with Naka Power, then known as Northland Utilities.

A formal council vote selecting NTPC as the new distributor followed in March 2016, in part because NTPC was pledging a drop of up to 20 percent in the rates Hay River residents paid.

“It could take 18 months,” then-mayor Brad Mapes optimistically said of the switch at the time.

In reality, the franchise transfer was held up by years of regulatory and legal squabbling over the public interest in the switch, its impact on other nearby communities, and the dollar values involved in the transaction.

The transfer is now set to take place on March 1, 2025 – but the arguing isn’t over.

Rate debate

NTPC and Naka Power are still in front of the NWT Public Utilities Board, which regulates power in the territory, in a dispute over what NTPC should be allowed to charge Hay River residents.

NTPC is suggesting its Hay River residential rates will be effectively the same as those in Fort Smith.

Earlier this month, an NTPC document filed with the Public Utilities Board gave the proposed Hay River residential rate as 27.80 ¢/kWh. (No matter what the confirmed March 1 rate is, residents should expect their bills to fluctuate in the coming months. Additional charges known as riders are likely to be imposed to make financial adjustments related to the franchise transfer.)

According to Naka Power’s website, the current Naka Power residential rate in Hay River is 32.42 ¢/kWh plus a series of existing riders.

Naka Power objects to NTPC’s proposed rates, saying the proposal includes a 41-percent increase to the Hay River wholesale rate – going from 13.89 ¢/kWh to 19.54 ¢/kWh, a rate Naka Power would have to pay – that would cause “significant harm” to its remaining customers.

(Naka Power will still be the distributor in the South Slave and Dehcho communities of Kakisa, Dory Point, Fort Providence, Sambaa K’e, Enterprise and the Kátł’odeeche First Nation, as well as in Wekweètì and the Yellowknife area.)

More: Read NTPC’s submission on Hay River rates
More: Read Naka Power’s submission on those rates

Naka Power wants the regulator to tell NTPC to simply keep charging the same Hay River rates as Naka Power was for the time being, until a more permanent decision can be reached. NTPC says that isn’t easily done, not least because Naka Power has a different rate structure that won’t work for the power corporation.

When the Public Utilities Board will make a decision is not clear, though a ruling is needed imminently to provide certainty regarding what customers will pay.

That decision will be an interim one. A broader decision on a more lasting set of NTPC rates across the territory is due later this year.

Expect staff visits soon

In the meantime, both companies have begun preparing residents for the switch.

“There should be no disruption in your service when the distribution franchise moves to NTPC – there is no need for you to take any immediate action and you may not even notice that anything has changed,” NTPC said on a webpage dedicated to the franchise transfer.

“NTPC anticipates that the first bills for Hay River customers will be issued approximately six weeks after the franchise transfer becomes official. The outstanding balance on your final Northland Utilities [Naka Power] bill will be transferred to NTPC and will appear on your first NTPC bill.”

The most visible evidence of the change is likely to be staff arriving at people’s homes to change their electricity meters in the weeks ahead.

“Information about when the meter changes will be scheduled in your neighbourhood will be posted on social media,” said NTPC. “A door hangar will be left at your home or business to let you know when NTPC has completed replacement of your meter.”

Naka Power, meanwhile, will send crews door to door for final meter readings in the last two weeks of February, then send final bills to customers.

“Once you receive your final bill,” Naka Power wrote, “please submit payment to NTPC. Do NOT make any further payments to Naka Power Utilities (NWT).”

If you do inadvertently send a payment to Naka Power after March 1, you’ll be issued a refund by cheque.

Naka Power also provided a more detailed Q&A about the franchise transfer process.

“While we understand this may cause some uncertainty, we are committed to ensuring that the transition is as smooth as possible for customers in Hay River,” the company wrote.