Alberta government tells utilities to prove fair costs
- Changes by Alberta's provincial government will protect consumers by bringing greater transparency to electricity costs. Under new regulations, the onus is now on electricity transmission companies to prove the cost of transmission lines is reasonable. Under the old regulations, it was up to consumer groups to challenge the cost - a cost that is ultimately passed on to Albertans.
“We have taken action to ensure that Albertans aren’t on the hook for unjustified costs associated with building transmission lines,” said Alberta's Energy Minister Ken Hughes. “Transmission companies now must defend every cent they charge consumers. This brings more transparency and delivers on promises made following the retail market review.”
As part of its broader powers to scrutinize the cost of new transmission projects, the Alberta Utilities Commission will be able to assess information earlier in the process, so it can ensure that all costs are necessary.
In January 2013, government announced changes to transmission cost oversight and struck an MLA Implementation Team to protect Alberta consumers from volatile electricity costs.
An estimated $14 billion in new transmission infrastructures will be built over the next decade to meet the growing electricity demands Albertans and industry within the province.
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Parisians vote to ban rental e-scooters from French capital by huge margin
PARIS - Parisians have voted to rid the streets of the French capital of rental electric scooters, with an overwhelming 90% of votes cast supporting a ban, official results show.
Paris was a pioneer when it introduced e-scooters, or trottinettes, in 2018 as the city’s authorities sought to promote non-polluting forms of urban transport.
But as the two-wheeled vehicles grew in popularity, especially among young people, so did the number of accidents: in 2022, three people died and 459 were injured in e-scooter accidents in Paris.
In what was billed as a “public consultation” voters were asked: “For or against self-service scooters?”
Twenty-one polling…
