We received questions about increases to power bills and the cost of the project.
The Alberta Electric System Operator oversees the planning, maintenance and operation of the transmission grid and the cost for this is paid for by all Alberta electricity consumers. These costs are identified as the transmission charge on your power bill and includes costs associated with system projects such as the City of Edmonton Transmission Reinforcement Project. To find out more about transmission costs in Alberta you can contact the AESO at 1-888-866-2959 or stakeholder.relations@aeso.ca.
Transmission development is regulated by the Alberta Utilities Commission (AUC) to ensure reasonable rates along with safe and reliable service. With this in mind, EPCOR plans projects to minimizes costs to ratepayers.
High level cost estimates for the project are provided here. The first shows the estimated cost with above ground transmission route options and the second estimate shows the cost with an underground 240 kV route option. A 240 kV underground route option was developed due to potential technical challenges with the above ground route options. The 72 kV transmission line does not have the same constraints, therefore we are not considering an underground 72 kV option at this time.
Please note, these estimates are provided at a feasibility study level and may change as planning progresses. Cost is just one of the factors we consider when selecting preferred and alternate routes. It is also a factor the Alberta Utilities Commission considers when deciding which route to approve.