5 ways to combat rising electricity and natural gas rates in Alberta
CBC
Tracy Sorochan's utility bill just keeps climbing.
She and six other people share a five-bedroom duplex in northwest Edmonton, and for a year and a half, they paid about $550 per month for utilities, largely for electricity and natural gas.
In November, their bill jumped to $647, then hit $720 in December.
"We were able to afford everything fine, no problem, but now this extra $200 means we have to cut our groceries short," she told CBC News on Thursday.
"It's very hard because a couple of us just got our jobs back after being laid off."
Like Sorochan, many Albertans are struggling to stomach rising rates and fees for natural gas and electricity.
"Unfortunately, it's a bit of a perfect storm for Alberta residents," said Joel MacDonald, the founder of the energy comparison website energyrates.ca.
He said many factors, including this winter's cold snap, are contributing to the increases.
"When there was a slowdown in oil and gas prices, a lot of companies restricted their activities and that took a fair bit off the grid," he said.
Oil prices have gone back up again and so has demand.
The carbon tax also increased, affecting the price of natural gas.
Some of these things are out of Albertans' control, but there are ways to bring the cost of bills down.
Competitive retailers offer both floating and fixed rates. A few years ago, consumers who opted for floating rates benefited from lower prices, MacDonald said, but now Albertans are entering a period of price uncertainty.
Since demand on the electricity grid is increasing and there are supply constraints linked to the transition from coal to natural gas, he said consumers worried about price jumps should consider switching from floating to fixed-rate contracts.
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