Ontario prepares to extend disconnect moratoriums for residential electricity customers
TORONTO -
The Ontario government is preparing to announce relief for residential electricity users struggling because of the COVID-19 emergency, according to sources.
Sources close to those discussions say a decision has been made to lengthen the existing five-month disconnect moratorium by an additional three months.
News releases about the moratorium extension are currently being drafted and are expected to be released shortly.
Electricity utilities in Ontario are currently prohibited from disconnecting residential customers for non-payment during the winter period from November 15 to April 30.
The province is also looking at providing further relief by adjusting time-of-use prices, which are designed to encourage shifting of energy use away from periods of high total consumption to periods of low demand.
But that would require Ontario Energy Board approval and no decision has been finalized, our sources advise.
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National Grid and SSE to use electrical transformers to heat homes
LONDON - Thousands of homes could soon be warmed by the heat from giant electricity grid transformers for the first time as part of new plans to harness “waste heat” and cut carbon emissions from home heating.
Trials are due to begin on how to capture the heat generated by transmission network transformers, owned by National Grid, to provide home heating for households connected to district heating networks operated by SSE.
Currently, hot air is vented from the giant substations to help cool the transformers that help to control the electricity running through National Grid’s high-voltage transmission lines.
However, if the trial succeeds,…
