N.S. raises to $25 million the maximum fine Nova Scotia Power can be charged

Natural Resources Minister Tory Rushton says the province wants to hold the private utility “more accountable” for power outages and performance issues

CITYnews halifax \ Canadian Press

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HALIFAX — The Nova Scotia government is increasing to $25 million from $1 million the maximum allowable fine that Nova Scotia Power can be charged after outages.

Natural Resources Minister Tory Rushton says the province wants to hold the private utility “more accountable” for power outages and performance issues.

He says potential penalties against Nova Scotia Power for poor performance will be decided by regulation or by the Nova Scotia Utility and Review Board.

The utility between 2017 and 2021 was fined a total of $625,000.

The maximum single-year fine over that five-year period was in 2021, when Nova Scotia Power was forced to pay $375,000 for missing four of its 13 performance targets.

During the same period, Nova Scotians experienced on average 5.5 outages per year, with 3.4 of them caused by storms.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published March 22, 2023.

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This story was produced with the financial assistance of the Meta and Canadian Press News Fellowship.

The Canadian Press