Join us for a free screening of Academy Award winning documentary film maker Charles Ferguson’s film – Time to Choose. See full details below:
Date: Thursday, October 19, 2017
Location: The Regent Theatre, 50 King Street East, Oshawa
Web: www.timetochoose.com
Program:
Green Energy Doors Open (GEDO) is an energy literacy communications campaign and annual showcase of individual, community, and commercial sustainable energy projects. It is organized and spearheaded by the Ontario Sustainable Energy Association. The initiative aims to showcase advancements in the sector, demonstrating that Ontario is already on the path to building a 100% clean, sustainable energy system.
The GEDO annual showcase weekend celebrates sustainable energy projects and success stories in provinces across Canada. Every year in early autumn, businesses, organizations, community cooperatives, indigenous communities, municipalities and homeowners open their doors and host events to promote the sustainable energy initiatives and technologies in their communities. GEDO is free to participate in as a host and to attend, and aims to raise awareness, support, education and enthusiasm around sustainable energy in Canada.
Oshawa Power is participating in this year’s Green Energy Doors Open this Friday. We will be offering tours and information sessions at 2 separate locations, 2000 Simcoe St N, Oshawa and 1282 Meath Dr, Oshawa. See the links below:
Solar Battery Energy Management – 1282 Meath Dr, Oshawa
Combined Heat and Power Plant at Oshawa Microgrid – 2000 Simcoe St N, Oshawa
The lights were turned on for the first time in Oshawa September 12, 1887. Use of electricity in Oshawa began when some enterprising citizens, E.S. Edmondson, J.L. Guy, and K.L. Murton created an arc lighting system for the little town and formed Oshawa Electric Light Company. Although they were met with a lack of local support for their endeavor they persevered to bring electricity to the small town of Oshawa. Over the last 130 years there have been many changes and challenges for Oshawa Power. It has been a fascinating and exciting evolution from just providing electricity to also providing water, transit, dark fibre and renewable energy to the residents of Oshawa.
Oshawa Power has always been on the forefront of change and continues to strive for industry “firsts”, all the while being community minded and a good citizen. We are proud of our heritage and legacy which explains a great deal of who we are – low rates, innovative, flexible and customer focussed. We remain committed to our legacy that puts our customers first in everything we do, and will continue to keep in step with the energy needs of this dynamic community. Now 130 years later Oshawa Power is still locally owned and has had a long history of bringing Oshawa forward and it continues to make its mark in the industry as being a leader of innovation, a leader in customer service and satisfaction, a leader in renewable energy solutions and a financially responsible asset for our shareholder. We look forward to a future where we will expand our role and continue to be a positive force in our community.
To look through some of our archives and learn more about Oshawa Power’s history please visit www.oshawapower.ca/timeline/
As we watched the destruction caused by Hurricane Harvey in Houston, Oshawa Power employees took action and began to fundraise to contribute to the Harvey relief fund. With Hurricane Irma close on Harvey’s heels set to cause even more damage, the call for help was received from the Florida utilities to help with the recovery effort and Oshawa Power immediately mobilized and sent the team.
Oshawa Power has joined with other Ontario partners and supplied three journeyman power lineman to aid in the power restoration effort in Florida. Our team crossed the border Friday evening and has made their way already into the heart of the worst area surrounding Miami. As we await to be joined by our Canadian colleagues early reports from our team are the devastation is very severe and the power restoration will take a considerable amount of time. We are proud of our workers for volunteering to be away from their families to help the people and businesses of Florida recover from this devastation.
Hurricane Irma recently made landfall in the U.S. state of Florida as a major hurricane; it was the most intense Atlantic hurricane observed in over a decade. It was also the most intense hurricane to strike the United States since Katrina in 2005, and the first major hurricane to hit the state of Florida since Wilma in 2005. Irma flooded streets, spawned tornadoes, knocked out power to millions of people across the state and snapped massive construction cranes over the Miami skyline.
Nearly 7.2 million homes and businesses were without power in multiple states. The vast majority were in Florida. The state’s emergency management officials said the storm cut power to more than 6.5 million account holders across the state as of Monday afternoon.
As reported to CBS News Eric Silagy, the CEO of Florida Power & Light, said Irma caused the most widespread damage in the company’s history. It affected all 35 counties in the utility’s territory which is most of the state’s Atlantic coast and the Gulf coast south of Tampa. The most extensive damage was likely in the Naples area, but a full assessment was ongoing. He said 19,500 electric workers have been deployed in the restoration effort.
Oshawa Power is proud to answer the call and send its very best to those in need in Florida and be a part of representing Canada in this effort. While we await the safe return of our colleagues we will continue to post regular updates of their progress. We wish them well and ask them to be safe.
To follow our team’s progress please check our website www.oshawapower.ca, or follow us on Twitter or Facebook
As seen on CTV News, Oshawa Power and Utilities has been selected as one of three Utilities to participate in a pilot program that will give residents the ability to pick and choose a Utility Billing package that will work the best to suit the needs of their household. At Oshawa Power our goal is to bring the best services and value to our customers, when we applied to be a part of this initiative we thought it would benefit our community by giving more flexibility and better pricing options to our customers. The price of Electricity we understand is extremely important as well as the services we provide. We are pleased to be one of the preferred choices of the Ontario Energy Board to lead this important initiative here in Oshawa.
More details will follow, as we get closer to the launch of this but if you are interested in participating in this new and innovative program please contact our office. Stay tuned for more exciting information as the program unfolds!
See the news story here:
http://toronto.ctvnews.ca/province-set-to-announce-pick-and-pay-hydro-options-1.3565596
Oshawa PUC Networks Inc. (OPUCN) filed an application with the Ontario Energy Board on July 4, 2017, pursuant to section 78(2) of the Ontario Energy Board Act, 1998 (OEB Act), seeking approval for 2018 and 2019 final electricity distribution rates commencing on January 1, 2018. The OEB has assigned file number EB-2017-0069 to the application.
Please note our Annual General Meeting will be held on Thursday, June 29th, 2017, at 11:00a.m. Please see the location details below:
The Robert McLaughlin Gallery
Isabel McLaughlin Room
72 Queen St Civic Centre, Oshawa, ON
Oshawa Power and Utilities Corporation has been notified of potential fraudulent activity that could be happening in Oshawa. We would like to warn our ratepayers that there are reports that consumers in the Greater Toronto Area have been approached by salespeople claiming to represent the Ontario Energy Board (OEB), offering energy conservation rebates on furnaces or water heaters and other financial incentives and saying that a home inspection was required.
These claims are untrue and violate OEB regulations that protect consumers. Consumers with questions or concerns about any sales calls or door-to-door experiences are encouraged to contact the OEB at 1-877-632-2727 within the hours of 8:30 a.m. and 5 p.m., Monday to Friday.
Please be aware that Oshawa Power does not send anyone door to door to sell products, services or contracts. Anyone representing Oshawa Power will have proper identification with them and you may contact us Monday to Friday 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. at 905-723-4623 if you have any questions or concerns.
Learn more
https://www.oeb.ca/sites/default/files/consumer-alert-20170518.pdf
Update May 26, 2017:
We are pleased to report that we have successfully avoided any contact with the wannacry ransomware virus and as a result Oshawa Power is out of immediate danger of exposure. Oshawa Power is very proud to be able to say that we were able execute processes to prevent any exposure to not only our own network but also to our customers and our partners.
Moving forward we will resume normal operations with email communication but cyber security is still heightened. We want to ensure our customers that communications and ebills from Oshawa Power are safe. We will continue with ongoing diligence to ensure network protection and we will utilize tools and processes to prevent any virus from damaging our network. Our goal is to keep customers safe and the power on. We would like to thank you for your patience during this critical time and we are very happy to report these positive results.
Notice to all Customers:
Recently in the news you may have heard about one of the most significant malware outbreaks called “Wannacry Ransomware Virus”. Once infected, the virus has the ability to encrypt your machine, and also is able to spread from one computer to another computer within a corporate or personal network.
****The virus can easily get in to your machine through email attachments or malicious websites. If the email makes it through to your mailbox and you click on the attachment or link it starts a chain of events that leads to the download of the WannaCry ransomware worm to your machine.
As a result, Oshawa Power has taken steps to mitigate the risk of exposure to this virus in our network and to protect our customers. We have heightened cyber security and have had to make some operating decisions that may impact our customers. We have limited access to our customer correspondence email accounts and as a result you may experience a delay in getting a response. If you have a matter that requires immediate attention please fax your request to 905-743-5222.
The following email accounts have been limited:
Please visit our website, follow us on Twitter or Facebook @oshawapower for further updates.
Thank you,
For customers who are having difficulties paying their utility bills, Oshawa PUC Networks Inc. has several ways to help.
We work closely with social agencies in the Durham Region area to offer assistance and ease the burden of paying utility bills for low income individuals and families in our local community, while helping to ensure we can continue to provide utility services to their homes. If you, or someone you know, are having difficulties paying utility bills, please consider the following assistance.
Contact us
First and foremost, before falling behind on utility bill payments, contact us for assistance. We want to work with our customers to help. Call our Customer Service department at 905-723-4623, Monday to Friday from 8:30 AM to 4:30 PM
Emergency assistance for customers with past due amounts on bill
The Low Income Emergency Assistance Program (LEAP) offers assistance to customers who are struggling to pay their electricity bills. A one-time grant of up to $500 in emergency assistance for low-income customers ($600 if the home is heated electrically) is available to those who qualify. Call the Community Development Council of Durham at 905-686-2661 to see if you are eligible. We will suspend disconnection for 21 days if, at the time, we are notified you are being assessed for eligibility to receive emergency funding under the Low-Income Energy Assistance Program (LEAP).
Monthly credit on the bill
The Ontario Electricity Support Program, or OESP, provides ongoing assistance directly on the bills of eligible low-income electricity consumers. Eligible customers can receive a $35 to $75 credit on their monthly electricity bill. If your home is electrically heated, or you rely on medical devices requiring a lot of power, OESP offers a higher level of assistance
Customers can apply online at OntarioElectricitySupport.ca, call OESP at 1-855-831-8151 or contact John Howard Society for application information and assistance at 905-579-8482.
Equal Payment Plans
Oshawa PUC Networks offer their customers the option of an equal billing plan. You will be billed an amount each month equal to the average of your bills from the last 12 months. We will review your equal monthly payment plan at least once a year to make sure you have not paid too much or too little. You have the choice of payment due dates of either the 5th, 15th or 25th of the month. You will have to sign to have your payments automatically withdrawn from you bank account.
Benefits:
This option helps you plan your monthly payments based on a consistent amount.
If you end up owing your utility more than the amount billed, the utility will collect those funds over a period of 12 months.
If your utility owes you, a credit will be applied to your account or you can get a refund cheque depending on the amount.
Arrears Management Program
Oshawa PUC Networks offers you the opportunity to go on an Arrears Payment Plan. The payment amount is calculated after:
If you owe less than twice your average monthly bill, you will have at least five months to pay. If you owe more than twice your average monthly bill, then you will be given at least 10 months. Don’t fall behind on your payments. You are still responsible for paying your regular electricity bill and the payment plan. If you miss more than one payment, the local utility may cancel the payment plan.
Exception: You may not be able to enter into an arrears payment plan if you have already been on a plan in the last two years.
There are separate rules for low-income customers who want to enter into an arrears payment plan. Oshawa PUC Networks will waive security deposits, and allow longer payment times. If you owe less than twice your average monthly bill, you will have at least 8 months to pay. If you owe more than twice your average monthly bill, then you will be given at least 12 months.
saveONenergy Home Assistance Program
Offered by local utilities, this program provides free, energy efficient devices and products to qualified homeowners, tenants with no cost to lower future consumption. Some products include LED light bulbs, ENERGYSTAR certified ceiling fans, advanced power bars and more. Customers may also be eligible for a new, energy-efficient refrigerator or other appliance as well as a programmable thermostat, weather-stripping and extra insulation if they live in a home that is electrically heated. Call 1-877-688-5640 or email homeassistance@summerhill.com to see if you qualify. Learn more
Online help to save energy and money
Oshawa PUC Networks Inc. expects to rollout My EnergyXpert to customers by Winter 2018, and will present customers with free online energy audits and energy savings plans that will drive action towards achieving energy savings. Using information specific to your home, we can help you pin-point energy saving opportunities and take advantage of financial incentive programs. Visit our website for more energy saving ideas and coupons.
Affordability Fund Trust
The Government of Ontario established the Affordability Fund as part of the Ontario Fair Hydro Plan to assist electricity customers who do not qualify for low-income conservation programs and are unable to make energy efficiency improvements without financial assistance. Eligible customers will benefit from upgrades to their home that will help make it more energy-efficient and in turn, will reduce their electricity bills over the long-term. Individuals who qualify for the Home Assistance Program, Low-Income Energy Assistance Program and the Ontario Electricity Support Program are not eligible for the Affordability Fund. For more information call 1-855-494-FUND (1-855-494-3863) or visit www.affordabilityfund.org.
Know your rights
The Ontario Energy Board developed a list of rules, including for payment plans and disconnection, to ensure all consumers across the province are treated fairly. Review customer service rules for electricity from the Ontario Energy Board to understand repayment options and arrangements, special rules for low-income customers, and more.
Further information
To speak one-on-one with a member of our team, call Customer Service at 905-723-4623, Monday to Friday from 8:30 AM to 4:30 PM.
Further resources:
