Nova Scotia Power, the province’s electric utility, has been fined $750,000 for failing to meet certain 2022 performance standards.
The Nova Scotia Utility and Review Board, the provincial energy regulator, said privately owned Nova Scotia Power failed to satisfy five of 14 performance targets related to reliability, restoring power after adverse weather events, and service installations.
As a result, the regulator has fined Nova Scotia Power $750,000. In 2020, the board ordered Nova Scotia Power to pay a $250,000 penalty, and in 2022 it was fined $375,000.
In May of this year, Nova Scotia Power filed a response to the board's latest findings, saying the utility's failure on seven occasions in 2022 to meet the standard for restoring power within 48 hours of severe weather was the result of damage caused by tropical storm Fiona.
As a result, the board agreed to remove some Fiona-related power outage data, as they did after tropical storm Dorian hit the province in 2019.
However, the regulator still concluded that a penalty of $750,000 for the utility's 2022 performance was appropriate.
Nova Scotia Power said the damage from tropical storm Fiona was unprecedented, and that it has invested $180 million annually to improve reliability and is hiring more workers to keep up with Nova Scotia’s population growth.
In 2022, Nova Scotia Power's parent company, Emera Inc. (EMA), reported a $945 million profit. The stock of Emera has declined 19% over the last 12 months to trade at $50.40 a share.
