BC Hydro to allow for more time on bill payment owing to long running cold weather

The blast of Arctic air that has made frequent dips into many areas of the province this winter is making for some high level consumption of energy and with it, increases to Hydro bills.

Such has been the length of time that the cold blasts of the north have been found across the province that BCHydro has seen the demand for electricity reach all time high records over the last few months, with January 3rd the new baseline for energy usage for BC.

According to statistics from BC Hydro, on that date, the new peak record for power consumption saw the demand for energy reach 10,126 megawatts between 5 and 6 PM.

With the province now firmly in the grip of the cold weather, the energy utility is taking some steps to help ease the burden of pill paying for those that may have difficulties in meeting their payment requirements.

As part of BC Hydro's announcement of yesterday, the utility outlined the background to their six month program to spread out hydro payments for those that are unable to pay the increased bills of the winter months.

Winter payment plans are available for bills issued from December 1, 2016 to March 31, 2017. Look for your billing date on your bill to be sure.

You'll need to call in to request arrangements before the due date listed on your bill – don't wait until a bill is overdue.

All residential customers are eligible to make winter bill payment arrangements, regardless of your location, home type, or bill amount.

The utility also notes that they do offer an equal payment plan, which helps to spread out the payment process over the course of the full year.

Residents that are interested in the program can set up their six month payment program by contacting BC Hydro at 1 800 BCHYDRO (1 800 224 9376)

BC Hydro notes that as the cold snap continues so too will be the increased demand from the public, with consumption in the winter months expected to se an increase of 88 per cent in the cold weather months.

You can examine the full details to the winter payment arrangements here.

As part of the information package from Monday, BC Hydro also offers up a few suggestions for residents of British Columbia when it comes to how they can be more energy efficient around the house.

More items of interest related to BC Hydro can be found on our archive page here.