Ontarians Pay More for Electricity Per Month Than Germans

April 20, 2009

by Paul Gipe

It seems counterintuitive. German residential consumers pay less for electricity per month than those in Ontario. This despite the fact that Germans pay a much higher price per kilowatt-hour--almost three times--than residential consumers in Ontario. How can that be? Simple, Germans simply use less electricity, so much less that their total bills are less.

The conclusion? While the price per kilowatt-hour is important in determining how much we pay for electricity, the amount of electricity that we actually consume is equally important.

My thanks to Marion Fraser, an authority on the energy conservation potential in Ontario, for pointing this out to me. I've worked in renewable energy for many years and this little factoid escaped my attention.

So claims that renewable energy will cost Ontario consumers more is not only disingenuous but dangerously misleading. With aggressive conservation programs Ontario consumers may pay less per month than they do now even with significant amounts of new renewable energy.

• Electricity from Renewable Energy Sources: What Does it Cost Us? (March, 2008) , page 26
• Electricity Conservation and Demand Management Strategies in Ontario: Powerful Choices that Make Cents Presentation by Ian Rowlands (University of Waterloo) to the Third Age Learning Series RIM Park, 28 October 2008
• Danish Stats 2007

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