Manitoba Hydro wants customers to pay a bit more for electricity.
The utility is seeking regulatory permission to boost rates by 3.95 per cent on April 1, 2015 and again on April 1, 2016.
“These increases are required for the continued safe, reliable supply of electricity to Manitobans,” Scott Thomson, president and CEO of the utility, said in a news release.
The release said that even if the increases are approved, Manitobans will pay among the lowest general electricity rates in Manitoba.
The increases would each amount to an extra $3.20 a month for a residential customer without electric space heat who uses an average of 1,000 kilowatt-hours, Hydro said.
The monthly bill for a residential customer with electric space heat, using an average of 2,000 kilowatt-hours, would rise by $6.11 a month with each increase, according to the utility.
Hydro bills have steadily increased in recent years. Rates last went up on May 1, 2014, when regulators okayed a 2.75 per cent hike even though the utility wanted a 3.95 per cent boost.
Manitobans opposed to the latest proposed increases may contact the Public Utilities Board to voice their concerns.
