Ottawa Electric customers are likely to keep paying a surcharge to help cover a million dollar charge the city got unexpectedly last year from the Grand River Dam Authority stemming from the severe cold snap a year ago. Ottawa Finance Director, Melanie Landis, says the original surcharge was about to end, but the GRDA charge make that impossible:
To make it easier to understand this surcharge extension, City staff proposes to round off to even numbers; for example, the average residential household was paying around $5.46. The new charge would be $5.50. The extended surcharge would last around 20 months, with large customers getting a break from what they had been paying. The 20 months reflects the time needed to cover the extra million dollars with the reduced monthly surcharge for entities such as schools.
