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Dynamic
pricing

The Winter Credit Option and Rate Flex D are two dynamic rate offerings that could help you reduce your electricity bill if you lower or shift your consumption at the right time on certain winter days.

Running time: 1 minute 15 seconds.

Video transcript Dynamic pricing

What are winter peaks?

When everyone uses a lot of electricity at the same time in winter, it puts significant pressure on the grid and creates what’s known as a winter peak. To reduce the pressure and spread out the demand for electricity at specific times, we turn to our dynamic pricing customers. Those specific times are

Two profitable rate offerings

If you can reduce or shift electricity use during winter peaks, you have two options: the Winter Credit Option and Rate Flex D.

Winter Credit Option

Summer period¹Base rate price
Winter period² outside a peak demand eventBase rate price
Winter period² during a peak demand event (up to 100 hours each winter)Base rate price minus a credit of 53.526¢ per kilowatthour (kWh) curtailed
Times when a peak demand event may occur7 days a week
Between 6 and 9 a.m. and 4 and 8 p.m.
Interesting savings potentialZero risk: your bill can only get lower.
Learn more about the Winter Credit Option

Sign up all year round

Rate Flex D

Summer period¹Base rate price
Winter period² outside a peak demand eventPrice about 30% lower than the base rate price
Winter period² during a peak demand event (up to 100 hours each winter)Price higher than the base rate price: 53.526¢ per kilowatthour (kWh) curtailed
Times when a peak demand event may occurMonday to Friday
Between 6 and 9 a.m. and 4 and 8 p.m.
Greater savings potentialYour bill can increase if you don’t reduce your electricity use during peak demand events.
Learn more about Rate Flex D

Sign up
between April 1 and November 20

Period from April 1 to November 30, inclusive.
Period from December 1 to March 31 of the following year, inclusive.

How does it work?

You receive an email notification before 5 p.m. on the day before a peak demand event.
You reduce your electricity use during the peak demand event or shift it outside the peak demand event.
The following day, you can see how much you saved by going to your Customer Space.

Peak demand events are associated with a time period during which Hydro-Québec has determined that electricity demand will be very high.

Discover your potential savings and sign up

In your Customer Space, you can compare the rates to find out how much you could save and sign up for the Winter Credit Option or Rate Flex D.

See how much I could save

Tips from the specialists

When you sign up for dynamic pricing, you join a growing community of Quebecers who want to take action. You’ll have access to a forum that gives members the opportunity to ask all their questions, find answers and share tips and advice for peak demand events. Hydro-Québec specialists are available to answer your questions!

Discover the dynamic pricing community (in French only)

We get results when we work together

The equivalent of the average demand of 29,400 households
per event

Thanks to last season’s collective effort, dynamic pricing participants helped reduce electricity demand equivalent to the average consumption of 29,400 residential customers per event!

See the overall results

Frequently asked questions

About dynamic pricing

Why has Hydro-Québec come up with these rate offerings?

With these offerings, everyone is a winner. If you can reduce or shift electricity use at Hydro-Québec’s request, you benefit, because your efforts translate into savings. Hydro-Québec benefits because of the lower electricity demand during peak periods.

In addition to giving customers an opportunity to save on their bill, dynamic pricing reduces pressure on the power system during a hundred hours over the winter period. Everyone wins when we consume energy responsibly.

Would Hydro-Québec consider extending dynamic pricing to the summer?

No. In contrast to our Canadian and American neighbors, the demand for electricity in Québec is very strongly influenced by the use of electric heating systems in most homes. As a result, demand is much higher in winter than in summer. Even if air-conditioning use were to increase in Québec, it’s unlikely that demand would reach peak levels requiring the implementation of dynamic pricing in summer.

Enrollment

Am I required to sign up for the Winter Credit Option or Rate Flex D?

No. It’s up to you whether you decide to take advantage of the dynamic rate offerings or not, and you can cancel anytime.

Is enrollment limited?

No. But for winter 2023-2024, our goal is to sign up 300,000 residential and agricultural customers. This number is based in part on our supply plan. We hope it increases gradually so that we can be sure to offer customers the best support possible. Dynamic pricing is now available to all eligible customers and is totally voluntary.

I’m very interested in dynamic pricing. Can I sign up right away?

Yes. You can sign up right away in your Customer Space. Go to the Billing tab, and then select “Compare rates.”

What’s the difference between dynamic pricing and Hilo?

Dynamic pricing and the Hilo smart home service both aim to optimize home energy use during peak periods so customers can save on their electricity bills. The actions you’re willing to take to be energy wise will help you decide between the two.

The dynamic pricing options, the Winter Credit Option and Rate Flex D, help you save on your bill when you make simple changes to your energy consumption during peak periods using the devices that you already have at home.

With its turnkey smart home service and connected devices, Hilo will help you save energy throughout the year and shift your consumption outside of peak periods.

Peak demand events

When do peak demand events occur?

Peak demand events can take place from December 1 to March 31, from 6 to 9 a.m. and from 4 to 8 p.m. There may be 25 to 33 events per winter, at most, for a maximum of 100 hours in all.

How cold does it have to be to trigger a peak demand event?

There is no pre-established threshold, but the temperature is an important factor.

Peak demand events are scheduled when we anticipate high demand for electricity in Québec in winter. That’s the main consideration. It’s true that on cold days everyone uses a lot of energy at the same time, so the temperature has an impact on demand forecasts. However, demand isn’t always the same for a given temperature. For example, if it is −10°C for several days in a row, demand for electricity will be greater on the last day than on the first.

Other factors that affect the forecasted demand have to do with operating constraints related to electricity supply as well as power transmission and distribution. To manage power demand, Hydro-Québec diligently applies all the means at its disposal, including dynamic pricing.

Why don’t peak demand events occur systematically every day during peak hours?

By targeting fewer hours (maximum of 100 per winter), we can offer a more significant price difference between peak periods and off-peak periods, which optimizes your savings potential.

Dynamicpricing