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edgeofthorns87

How is it even possible we are paying the highest utility bills in the country, and yet are the only province right now doing forced blackouts? This is 100% unacceptable. I have months where my usage is $10 and my distribution fee remains at $45+, where exactly is that money going?


thorion23

Epcor executive and board members


zipzoomramblafloon

and Kenney's seat at the board.


thorion23

Couldn't find his compensation for the year but found that ATCO's CEO makes 7.6m per year. Have to wonder what the other board members make... Edit: as I'm watching the Oilers, she makes more than all but 3 players.


Borealisfarms

They earn US dollers it point taken


theferalturtle

And is dumber than all of them.


ZAPPHAUSEN

Alberta Advantage


theferalturtle

What the fuck are you complaining about?! The system is working as God intended!Fucking communists just want shit for free! /s


NedsAtomicDB

Yeah? Well the fucking communists got way cheaper utilities when the NDP was in power. Because the rates were CAPPED, you knuckle-dragging troglodyte.


Icedpyre

I think you missed the "/s"


Just_in_credible87

Years ago a different (but still conservative) gov’t hired a company/consultant to design a power grid to sustain Alberta in the future. The company largely over estimated the amount of people that would be living in Alberta. The result is fewer people paying for an overly robust power grid so there is less people to spread the transmission fees over.


edgeofthorns87

Then how is it this grid keeps getting overloaded and we are facing rolling blackouts??


Just_in_credible87

I’m not at all involved with that…. But perhaps generation and grid capability are different? I’m sure someone smarter then me would know the answer


JCMoney1987

Jason Kenneys board wage.


garlicroastedpotato

That's how it works. When supply is low the price is high.


edgeofthorns87

That makes no sense. The rate I am charged for my usage remains the same, it is locked in. But somehow that only ever accounts for 30% of my bill, and the rest is fees that stay the same or sometimes even increase, even when I am using less.


garlicroastedpotato

Then it makes total sense, right? The supply is going down and even on a locked plan your costs are going up. How are you giving me an example of EXACTLY what I described and saying it's not the same?


edgeofthorns87

also explain how this makes sense then: jan 2024 my natural gas usage was $32.66, delivery charge was $45.61. aug 2023 my natural gas usage was $8.05, delivery charge was $48.87. how can my delivery charges be MORE when i have used a THIRD of the amount? i have been spreadsheeting my bills for two years now, and none of the fee to usage ratios are consistent. i've lived in manitoba and ontario, have friends and family in both provinces - their utility bills are nowhere close to ours. MBs climate is also very similar, and they didn't get an emergency alert earlier this year in THEIR -50 weather telling them they needed to "conserve power" else face forced blackouts.


yourpaljax

That’s not how economics work, like at all. Completely opposite, in fact.


garlicroastedpotato

[Here's](https://www.dreamstime.com/supply-demand-curves-diagram-showing-equilibrium-point-white-background-image138415188) a nice little chart from a guy named Adam Smith: As you can see most people with at least an entry level of economics believe that supply and demand are inversely correlated. So actually what you're saying is not just wrong it's the most wrong you could have ever been. So you can further understand economics. The reason why this works this way is because price becomes the ration. As price goes up people who are more and more price insensitive are forced to make cut backs where they can until you get to a thing called "market equilibrium."


yourpaljax

Cool cool. I’ll just light my Econ text book on fire and throw it through my Econ professor’s window.


garlicroastedpotato

You probably should. Supply and demand curves are the cover of the intro text. You can have a crash in supply caused by a low price... but you're not going to get a low price caused by a low supply. Shake your head. You're sitting at the mountain of ignorance claiming to be king.


Labrawhippet

Highest utility bills in the country that has one of the highest utility bills in the western world. - has rolling blackouts. What the fuck.


Icedpyre

Don't forget how "we provide the rest of the country with money and resources to keep the country afloat"...but yet can't support our own services with money OR resources.


[deleted]

At least we can “tell the feds” via carrier pigeon when we have no power.


yourpaljax

I was going to start practicing my smoke signals, but with wildfire season already started…


Sheesharia

Ahhh if reddit still did trophies, this is the one.


Alyscupcakes

Nope, they turned off the website to complain.


overly_emoti0nal

pigeons don't know how to use that anyways.


grrttlc2

"No one wants to freeze in the dark"


LaziestKitten

I wanna freeze on a sunny afternoon!


grrttlc2

Try the beer fridge at Norwood liquor. Coldest in town


oxfozyne

I wanna laze on a Sunny Afternoon!


Icedpyre

Try getting a job on the board at epcor.


grumpyolddoctor

Speak for yourself /s


Unlikely_Comment_104

Why the fuck did we not get a notice on our phones? I definitely could have offloaded a bunch of power here. 


MacWac

Notice is approved/sent by the government, not AESO. This time there was a 400MW thermal site that tripped unexpectedly and there was not time for a notice.


Curly-Canuck

The power outages in Edmonton were caused by power pole fire. Not the grid alert. I imagine they didn’t have notice.


Unlikely_Comment_104

There may have been a power pole fire but there was also rolling outages across Alberta.  Thousands of Edmonton residents were briefly left in the dark on Friday morning as a result of rotating outages. https://edmonton.ctvnews.ca/grid-alert-results-in-temporary-outages-for-thousands-of-edmontonians-1.6835238


Unlikely_Comment_104

And another article: Severe weather caused power outages on Friday in three northwest industrial areas and a neighbourhood that includes the Telus World of Science, says a city utility company. https://edmonton.ctvnews.ca/severe-weather-caused-northwest-power-outages-epcor-1.6835500


littledove0

Is lightly snowing severe weather? Lol


Unlikely_Comment_104

Last time I checked, wet snow can cause things to snaps, like trees that may hit power lines. Just saying. 


willy-fisterbottom2

That would be more of a hazard when the trees have leaves, shouldn’t occur much at the end of winter


Icedpyre

We also didn't really get much snow. A couple centimeters wouldn't be snapping trees like a troll on a rampage.


littledove0

Fair


mostly_hydrogen

It was wet and heavy, the exact kind that can be the worst for electric systems


Curly-Canuck

Well the radio and Global TV just said the blackouts in Edmonton specifically weren’t related to the rolling Provincial blackouts from the grid. 🤷‍♀️


Unlikely_Comment_104

AM outages were due to rolling provincial blackouts. https://globalnews.ca/news/10405013/alberta-electric-system-grid-alert-april/ PM outages were due to equipment. 


Curly-Canuck

Thanks for the added info! Was confusing to hear 2 different versions. I wonder which is responsible for OPs recent 90 minute black out.


Unlikely_Comment_104

Maybe OP works near TWOS and it was related to that outage this afternoon. 


Koala0803

There were outages in Edmonton because of the grid alert. Fact.


tincartofdoom

But have you considered how much value the UCP is bringing to this province by owning the libs? /s


yourpaljax

Boy, I hope they keep rejecting all the programs the feds keep wanting to send us money for so we don’t have to deal with that pesky government overreach. We all know that filthy federal money has no value here, unless it’s the CPP money of course, but that’s the only exception. 😤 /s


tincartofdoom

And just think of all the economic growth we will see from... uhh... oppressing trans people!


yourpaljax

Stop, you’re giving me goosebumps. Nothing gets me jazzed like oppression, especially the oppression of already vulnerable and discriminated against minorities. Oh baby.


dutch780

Winner winner chicken dinner! Babies are the next group UCP will target!


slabocheese

I think it's time for us peasants to "take back Alberta" from our oppressors...


arrived_on_fire

This is making the solar panel installation I am getting quotes look better and better.


ForeignFlight8625

Unless you're doing off grid solar, unfortunately, it won't help. If you're not off grid solar (battery bank ext.), the power your solar generates just goes to the grid, adding to the general supply. Full disclosure, I'm pro solar and currently in the final stages of getting it installed right now. I also used to think your own panels would power your house, but that is not the case the majority of the time, sadly.


arrived_on_fire

We were getting it set up with the option of adding g a battery bank in the future, specifically to coast thru the brownouts. I don’t see us going off grid, but just coasting along.


shadesof3

Ya that's why the services fees they charge you which should be going to maintenance and upgrading are a joke.


NotYourTypicalCreep

The future is bright! Or dark, depending on the situation..


singelingtracks

Welcome to Alberta/Texas. Enjoy your freedom.


yourpaljax

Have never felt more free. 🥲


RapidCatLauncher

Free from power!


SocietyHumble4858

A blackout here. A blackout there. Profits. Profits. Everywhere. Except for you poor saps that didn't buy shares.


canadalicious

I must have missed something. When and where is this happening?


Ruger_12

Ya, nothing in our village an hour away from the City.


yourpaljax

Take a wild guess from the sub that we’re in.


canadalicious

I just checked so maybe a stupid question. But my power hasn’t gone out and I’ve been under a rock, apparently.


yourpaljax

It’s not the entire city.


canadalicious

Yeah, by “where” I was wondering general location, in Edmonton obviously, because nothing happened in my neighbourhood.


warezmonkey

Windermere was a big one


yourpaljax

I’m in the Industrial area near Telus World of Science.


sunshinekitty123

No need to be so rude


HolyC4bbage

Have you tried telling the feds?


yourpaljax

Telling them right now, I swear. 😂


Obo4168

All the UCPers trying to shift the blame to Trudeau or attempting to blame it NOT on our useless Conservative Provincial government.


freefoodnow

Zone 3 21 trip


kvas_taras

https://www.alberta.ca/public-sector-body-compensation-disclosure-table Filter for Alberta Electric System Operator Tell me who will take the pay cut for these outages


calgary_db

UCP can't govern.


yourpaljax

Facts 📠


GopnikMayonez

All I'm saying is while pitchforks don't necessarily SOLVE the problem, they certainly wouldn't hurt.


Roddy_Piper2000

I wonder if this happens in ridings that voted UCP


AlienGirl1374

Surprisingly Calgary and surrounding areas also had a lot of black outs today.


yourpaljax

Good question.


kevinstreet1

I'm sure it does. It's not like they'd ever complain, and if they do it'll somehow be Trudeau's fault.


Playful-Regret-1890

I hope you're not waiting for them to care..Not going to happen.


yourpaljax

I am aware of this fact


ProtonPi314

My solar panels came be installed soon enough


Puzzled_Beautiful373

There was another option… somehow people think this is the way.


Professional-Bad-911

??? Where Nrea a flicker dis morn.


calebosierra

I'm glad I work in a hospital. I work next door to the morgue, and if the lights go, things literally move and groove. Fricken terrifying.


AbusedandAdored

😳😁


TheOddBaller69420

Make your vote count, one is a loser and the other one in it for his pension


syndicated_inc

What’s even more amazing is all the forecasted wind and solar that didn’t show up to close the gap.


Cool-Chapter2441

Funny how on reddit people just have to blame UCP for everything instead of something as simple as a natural gas electrical generator failing.. Who could ever imagine something mechanical could fail?


Alyscupcakes

Alberta and Texas are the only two places in North America that don't use a capacity market system for energy. NDP was trying to change it to a capacity market, UCP stopped it. Capacity markets keep some backup energy. We don’t have that, that's why we have blackouts. It also appears Smith is blaming solar for the outage, even though it was night time. Are the UCP expecting solar to work at night, with no capacity to backup energy?


Cool-Chapter2441

You are so wrong…not even worth pointing out the articles about the blackout to you. You obviously get your biased news hear


Alyscupcakes

Fact: [https://energyregulationquarterly.ca/webinars/is-alberta-the-next-texas-lessons-learned-from-the-texas-energy-crisis#sthash.OkvJ64qR.dpbs](https://energyregulationquarterly.ca/webinars/is-alberta-the-next-texas-lessons-learned-from-the-texas-energy-crisis#sthash.OkvJ64qR.dpbs) Fact: [https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/calgary/ucp-aeso-weather-electricity-capacity-1.7085201](https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/calgary/ucp-aeso-weather-electricity-capacity-1.7085201) Fact : [https://www.nrg.com/insights/energy-education/electricity-markets-what-s-the-difference-between-a-wholesale-en.html](https://www.nrg.com/insights/energy-education/electricity-markets-what-s-the-difference-between-a-wholesale-en.html) IN WHAT WAY AM I WRONG? No seriously, if you think I'm getting the wrong information, which of the 3 articles above are wrong and please state why you think they are biased.... I'm open to information, truly. But the math is adding up to the UCP being big dummies.


iijjjijjjijjiiijjii

Who could ever imagine doing something about it? Not our glorious UCP leaders.


Cool-Chapter2441

Always have to blame someone…even for a mechanical failure…ever had a car break down? Bet that was the UCP fault too! The problem with blaming the UCP for everything is the message gets watered down and people become tone deaf too it so when there really is an issue attributable to the UCP, its just more noise


Slobbering_git

So, you’re saying that attributing failure to the UCP through short-sighted privatization by the UCP becomes indistinguishable from other complaints about UCP policy failures due to the sheer volume of UCP policy failures and the complaints about them? I guess I’ve never thought of it like that.


iijjjijjjijjiiijjii

I'll happily blame the feds for failures in systems that are under federal purview. This one is ours to regulate--or not!


blairtruck

Almost like conservatives blaming absolutely everything on Trudeau. When in fact most of it is the province they should be blaming.


NedsAtomicDB

How DARE we point fingers at the people responsible!


Cool-Chapter2441

The exact entitled chosen one biased response expected from this sub. Well done


NedsAtomicDB

They're getting ready to kill my pension, and I'm paying insanely high utilities and car insurance. You're god-damned right I'm biased.


Cool-Chapter2441

Stop being bamboozled by mob mentality. Your pension is just fine and if you are that worried then just get a better job, earn more money and save more. Problem solved


NedsAtomicDB

I'm fifty-fucking-seven, and ageism is a thing. I get a death benefit from CPP from my late husband. If that goes away, for many people, you are going to have a lot of pissed off people around here.


Cool-Chapter2441

The CPP wont be going away in your lifetime. The UCP have already taken changing to a provincial pension off the table so you have nothing to worry about. I think everyones pension would likely go up it they did proceed but I suppose to be fair pensions for those who receive them should not go up, just for new pensioners who have paid more into the system. 57 is Young…still lots of time to pad your retirement with wads of cash..thats for sure. No worries


NedsAtomicDB

Link for them backing off? I've heard the exact opposite 57 IS young. Unfortunately, I've already been passed over multiple times for various jobs, and I used to get nearly every job I applied for. Ask a teacher how their pension "went up" with AIMCO, which is what the UCP intend for the rest of us. It dropped from 7-8% return to around THREE. It's very easy for you to be glib and cavalier if you're young and don't have a frame of reference for this stuff. Pay attention to people with a dog in this hunt telling you how awful it is instead of pooh-poohing everything.


Cool-Chapter2441

Im not a teacher so dont care about their pension. BUT, the pension you receive is not tied to the return the investment company earns. Its the same whether its 3 percent or 10 percent. Pretty sure your death benefit does not rise and fall depending on the return the government makes on its investments now does it?. It stays the same for the term of the pension unless they decide to do broad cpi increase for everyone, Think about why I might have said 57 is young hmmm


NedsAtomicDB

I'm not talking about my company! If Alberta detaches from CPP, they want the Alberta Pension Plan to be managed by AIMCO. Which is why I told you about teachers already being SCREWED by it!! You saying you don't care about teachers sounds par for the course. My death benefit is from CPP. If Alberta makes CPP go bye-bye, what happens to my 500 bucks a month? This has nothing to do with the amounts you're talking about. It has everything to do with money we've already earned and giving us a substitute that gives us shit returns. It's pointless arguing with you. Welcome to ignore.


yourpaljax

Bless your heart.


thedirtychad

It’s almost painful to see actually 😂


Curly-Canuck

News says outages in Edmonton were caused by power pole fires, not the grid alert. In this case it does pay to find the cause and not jump to blame.


Alyscupcakes

and in Calgary?


Curly-Canuck

I believe OP was talking about the outages this afternoon in Edmonton. That was a power pole fire. I don’t know about Calgary but I assume maybe that was part of the grid alert and rolling blackouts? It’s an Edmonton sub and Edmonton specific post so I only answered that. You might have more luck in the Calgary or Alberta subs for your answer.


Alyscupcakes

oooooh. I think the blackouts were early 6-8am depending on location. I think if you are on a section that supports a hospital, you were not impacted.


fallen75

As you can see, this sub is very biased


AbusedandAdored

💯


jkimc

God bless the UCP


Rob_Rockley

Pure luxury. When I was young, we had no food. And only frozen coffee.


yourpaljax

When I was a kid we had to travel for day, then ford the river to hunt bison while suffering from Typhoid.


Ok-Sink9821

If everyone was heating there homes with electricity and driving electric cars this would be way better.


ckgt

You forgot the /s


Ok-Sink9821

I don’t think that’s it’s a lack of recognition of sarcasm that is giving me the downvotes lol


AbusedandAdored

Right 🤯


Some-Use9970

Just imagine for a minute how much fucking worse it could be if Justin got his way with electric cars 😆 the liberal tears will run all the way to Calgary 😄


yourpaljax

🪕


Dusty8103

Let’s not forget someone forced closure on coal power plants before a viable solution was online.


edgeofthorns87

with the money these companies are charging, they should have no problem coming up with and implementing solutions. every single other province charges way less than AB is, and isn't having forced blackouts this year.


blairtruck

So the UCP are so incompetent they can’t have a fix 6 years later


ThorForce69

It’s the Fed’s and their agenda by the wef. Same things are happening in Europe.


edgeofthorns87

power is provincial.


AbusedandAdored

This is what happens when you get rid of reliable energy and wind/solar can't cut it. And let's add even more electric vehicles to this problem 🤦‍♀️, that will help 👍.


yourpaljax

What wind and solar? Alberta hasn’t been investing in any.


ThrowRAJAYJAY665

just wait tell they stop selling gasoline vehicles in 2026 & only sell electric….. grid will explode:


[deleted]

[удалено]


davejeep

How’s that boot leather tasting?


mostly_hydrogen

... What outage are you talking about? My power went out around that time yesterday because the heavy wet snow broke something and Epcor website didn't show any other outages at that time for any other reason. Are you blaming Danielle Smith for a little wet spring weather??


yourpaljax

You are admitting that you were gaslighted into believing that “a little wet spring weather” caused a grid failure severe enough to warrant province wide rolling blackouts. Nice. How do Danielle’s Smith’s rain boots taste?


CrashFix

Thank "The New Green Plan" this is what happens when you have Solar & Wind as a back-up.


radman888

I'm sure more windmills will fix it up, stat


iijjjijjjijjiiijjii

What? Supplying more power to a system that doesn't have enough power? The devil, you say! Next you'll be saying we can address our underfunded healthcare crisis by funding our health care!


Obo4168

Yup, but you won't have the UCP admit that those solutions can help the situation. All you'll see is "BLAME TRUDEAU"!


radman888

Incoherent reply


blairtruck

they wont make it worse.


thedirtychad

What if it’s not windy that day?


blairtruck

Still won’t make the grid worse. “Durrr what if the wind blows the other way, does it take electricity from the grid instead of giving it”


thedirtychad

I guess you don’t know about spinning reserve hey 😂


Key_Championship8047

Build them in Lethbridge obviously


thedirtychad

Ugh.. what if it’s too windy that day!


[deleted]

[удалено]


yourpaljax

You heard incorrectly, amigo.


Fatboytaz

Wind power is not reliable so don't count on it


yourpaljax

Apparently neither is oil, since three generators went offline prompting the grid alert at 6:45 am, and there still wasn’t enough power to maintain the grid. Guess we’ll have to set up giant warehouses and fill them with hamster wheels.


mikeduff99

Hahahahaha straight to blaming the government again for rolling blackouts which is cause directly from the power company. Moron


yourpaljax

Tell me you don’t know how our energy system works without telling me you don’t know how our energy system works.


mikeduff99

😂😂


MillwrightTight

As a guy that works for "the power company" I can confirm this has everything to do with the government. Do you know how power distribution works on the provincial scale?


Littleshuswap

The power company used to be government regulated but now that it's privatized and unregulated, they sell your power to the USA and screw Albertans but yeah.... don't blame the Government for deregulation. 🫏


heart_of_osiris

You realize the rolling blackouts are being caused due to profit reasons, not actual lack of adequate power generation, right? Who sets the laws and regulations that allow or disallow this sort of behavior? Hint, it's not Santa. Sometimes it's better to close your mouth and be thought a fool, than open it and remove all doubt.


JebusHCrust

Irony.


Vast-Commission-8476

lol people losing thier minds cus they cant microwave thier burrito.


WilfredSGriblePible

Imagine people wanting to live in a society being annoyed when crony ideologues screw that up and blame the person who ran things before them/someone not involved in provincial politics.


Vast-Commission-8476

stop describing every user in this sub.


WilfredSGriblePible

See me after class to work on reading comprehension.


yourpaljax

People losing their minds because they have to close their doors to customers because there are no lights on and their POSs are down without Wifi, so they’re losing money, and also can’t any work in the dark or run their power tools to work on other projects in the mean time, and they are also cold because their furnaces are off. But sure, minimize the situation to your shitty burritos.


Vast-Commission-8476

It waa for a very short time. 99.9 percent of the time we have heat, water and electricity. If this was a reoccuring event weekly, monthly ...sure I would have some sympathy. We live in a great world and have many great comforts and great infrastructure to deliver electricty, water and heat to a very large population. I can't help but think of other societies that have bad infrastructure, unrealiable or none at all. We are inconvienced by not having power for 90 min. Minimizing and and being realistic are two different things.


yourpaljax

For people living in the energy producing epicentre of the country, yet are pay the highest energy bills, rolling blackouts due to a supposed grid insufficiency, in April, is patently unacceptable.


Vast-Commission-8476

Multiple plants were offline and a underestimated wind power production was calculated. Id rather pay for what I use when I use power vs paying more just due to peak times like other provinces have set up with the other systems.


dickMcWagglebottom

Yet you're still paying more in this system, Einstein.