Latest news with #Hydro-Québec
Cision Canada
31-07-2025
- Business
- Cision Canada
Hydro-Québec reaffirms its commitment: Affordable and competitive rates Français
MONTRÉAL, July 31, 2025 /CNW/ - Hydro-Québec reaffirms its commitment by asking the Régie de l'énergie to approve limited rate increases that are affordable for all Quebecers and that will maintain the competitive advantage of local businesses. The increases will be stable and predictable for the next three years, enabling Hydro-Québec to make the structural investments needed to carry out the Action Plan 2035, in particular to improve service quality and reduce the number of power outages by 35%. The annual rate increases submitted by Hydro-Québec to the Régie de l'énergie for 2026, 2027 and 2028 are as follows: Residential rates: 3% Commercial rates: 4.8% Industrial rates: 4.8% The average increase for residential customers amounts to approximately $2.40 per month for an apartment and $6.70 per month for a midsize home. With Hydro-Québec's $0 smart thermostat program, households will be able to save approximately $150 a year for a midsize home, considerably reducing the impact of the rate increase or even offsetting its effect completely for a year. Québec continues to stand out with electricity rates among the lowest in North America, giving it a competitive advantage. In fact, rate increases have been significant in neighbouring power systems on account of the investments they required. Local businesses will therefore benefit from electricity from renewable sources as well as rates that are well below those in comparable regions, enhancing Québec's competitive position. Customized energy efficiency measures will also enable businesses to save up to 20% on their electricity bills. The rate adjustments are needed due to inflation and investments stemming from the Action Plan 2035, which focus on: Improving service quality Increasing electricity generation capacity to support economic growth and decarbonation Implementing energy efficiency initiatives Significant efficiency efforts in the amount of $450 million have enabled Hydro-Québec to reduce costs, thereby alleviating the increases by 0.7% for each of the next three years. For example, the company has improved its productivity by using drones for inspections and artificial intelligence for more efficient work scheduling. Support to lower electricity bills "We're going to invest a record amount of $2.5 billion in energy efficiency over the next three years. Our $0 smart thermostat program will enable residential customers to significantly lower the impact of the rate increase or even offset its effect completely for a year. We're also going to work closely with our commercial and industrial customers to support them, taking into account their varying realities in the current economic climate," said Dave Rhéaume, Executive Vice President – Commercial Activities and Chief Customer Officer. Over the coming years, the following measures will be implemented: $0 smart thermostat program for residential customers, offered to both homeowners and tenants. Investments in the amount of $75 million to support homeowners and tenants in challenging energy situations. In collaboration with the government of Québec and the government of Canada, a new energy- efficient renovation program will be deployed to help lower energy costs for households in challenging energy situations, make homes more energy efficient and reduce greenhouse gas emissions. Tailored measures to enable businesses to save up to 20% on their electricity bills, including: For small and medium businesses, innovative solutions that use artificial intelligence to provide energy analyses that can enable them to optimize their consumption For industrial customers, a financial and technical support service that will boost their productivity Bill relief measures for certain sectors of activity made vulnerable under the current economic climate. Beginning in 2026, new financial assistance for the purchase of solar panels, more specifically, $1,000 for each installed kW, up to a maximum of 40% of the total installation costs. For a midsize home, this could represent $5,000 in assistance. For a commercial building, this could represent $40,500 in assistance.
Cision Canada
18-07-2025
- Business
- Cision Canada
Government of Canada Provides Early Decision on the Adding Capacity to Sainte-Marguerite-3 Generating Station Project in Quebec
OTTAWA, ON, July 18, 2025 /CNW/ - The Impact Assessment Agency of Canada (IAAC) has conducted an assessment of the Adding Capacity to Sainte-Marguerite-3 Generating Station Project located in on the Sainte-Marguerite River near Sept-Îles, Quebec, and determined that its potential adverse effects within federal jurisdiction would be limited or addressed through other means. The proponent, Hydro-Québec, may now move forward with obtaining any necessary authorizations and permits from federal authorities. To arrive at its section 16 decision under the Impact Assessment Act, IAAC engaged other jurisdictions, federal experts, stakeholders, the public, and Indigenous Peoples to review the project description and identify potential impacts to federal jurisdiction and ensure they can be addressed. IAAC is of the view that the potential adverse effects within federal jurisdiction would be limited or addressed through existing federal and provincial laws and regulations. These include but are not limited to the Fisheries Act, the Species at Risk Act and the Migratory Birds Convention Act, 1994, as well as Quebec's Environment Quality Act. As a result, a more comprehensive federal impact assessment is not required. The documents and list of factors considered can be found in IAAC's decision with reasons. Quick Facts Hydro-Québec is proposing to increase the capacity of the Sainte-Marguerite-3 hydroelectric power station on the Sainte-Marguerite River near Sept-Îles, Quebec. As proposed, the project would include the installation of a third generating unit in the existing power station, at the site earmarked for this purpose, as well as the construction of a 300-metre underground penstock linking the headrace tunnel to the future generating unit. The project would increase the capacity of the existing power station by at least 440 megawatts, for a total of 1,322 megawatts. The review process from start to finish took 60 days to complete. IAAC facilitates the sustainable development of major projects subject to the Impact Assessment Act through open and efficient assessments. These assessments identify ways to ensure the environment and Indigenous Rights are protected as projects get built. Decisions like these ensure that Canada's impact assessment process is efficient by determining at an early stage whether a comprehensive impact assessment is required or not.
Montreal Gazette
17-07-2025
- Montreal Gazette
Weekend traffic: Mercier Bridge down to one lane
Trouble spots to look out for Thursday night and this weekend: Fireworks The International des Feux Loto-Québec will once again mean the following closures Thursday: The Jacques-Cartier Bridge from 8 p.m. to 11:59 p.m. The Ville-Marie Tunnel east of Robert-Bourassa Blvd., from 8 p.m. to 5 a.m. Parts of Notre-Dame St., Ste-Catherine St. and René-Lévesque Blvd. east of the Jacques-Cartier Bridge. During these times, the Victoria Bridge will have both lanes open toward the South Shore. No fireworks show is scheduled for this weekend. Mercier Bridge The downstream span of the bridge will be closed from 11 p.m. Friday to 5 a.m. Monday, with traffic sharing the other span with one lane in each direction. Accesses to and from Airlie St. remain open. Côte-de-Liesse Rd. The street will be closed eastbound between Devonshire Rd. and the Décarie Interchange from 10 p.m. Friday to 8 p.m. Sunday. This will affect traffic coming toward the interchange from Highway 520. Further east, only one lane is available on the road at Lucerne Rd., as Hydro-Québec continues work, from 10 p.m. Friday to 11:59 p.m. Saturday. Continuing disruptions Réseau express métropolitain: The REM is completely closed until Aug. 17. Free shuttle buses connect Gare Centrale with the other stations, running from 5:30 a.m. to 1 a.m. daily. Highway 10: Access to the Bonaventure Expressway from the Pointe-Nord area of Nuns' Island is closed until the beginning of September. A westbound lane on the Bonaventure Expressway is closed between the Victoria Bridge and Wellington St. until December. On the Clément Bridge connecting Montreal with Nuns' Island, traffic runs contraflow with one lane in each direction until December. Highway 19: Two lanes are open on the bridge in each direction, with partial or complete closings on some nights, until the end of 2026. Highway 20/Route 132: In St-Lambert, repaving work on a section of the eastbound highway between the Champlain Bridge and Notre-Dame Ave. requires it to close from 8 p.m. to 5 a.m. until the end of July. Highway 40: The Île-aux-Tourtes Bridge between Vaudreuil-Dorion and Montreal Island is down to two lanes in each direction. Ste-Catherine St.: The street is closed to traffic between Stanley St. and McGill College Ave. for work on major renovations through summer. Côte-de-Liesse Rd.: Two of three lanes are closed eastbound before Rockland Rd. until November. Ramps to Acadie Blvd. south from Highway 15 and Côte-de-Liesse Rd. are closed. Jean-Talon St.: Work on building the Blue Line métro extension will force parts of Jean-Talon St. to be closed. Affected buses (in particular 141 and 372) are detoured onto Bélanger and Everett Sts. to avoid those areas, and a temporary shuttle bus has been established alone Jean-Talon and Bélanger Sts. St-Jacques St.: Work on underground infrastructure has closed the street between St-Philippe St. and de Courcelle St. until Aug. 10. Pie-IX Blvd.: Work to extend the SRB Pie-IX south means only one lane is open in each direction between Pierre-de-Coubertin Ave. and Notre-Dame St. Ste-Catherine St. (eastbound only) and Hochelaga St. remain open through Pie-IX, but other cross streets are closed west of Pie-IX. Ste-Catherine St.: In Mercier—Hochelaga-Maisonneuve, the street is closed westbound from Pie-IX Blvd. to Jeanne-D'Arc Ave. until Sunday. St-Urbain St.: The overpass over the Ville-Marie Expressway is closed for a long renovation until the end of 2026. Pedestrian access is maintained. Pedestrianized streets this summer Mont-Royal Ave. between St-Laurent Blvd. and St-Denis St. until Oct. 16 and between St-Denis St. and De Lorimier Ave. until Sept. 4. Duluth Ave. E. between St-Laurent Blvd. and St-Hubert St. until Oct. 16. Wellington St. between 6th Ave. and Regina St. until Sept. 19. Ste-Catherine St. E. between St-Hubert St. and Papineau Ave. and a short stretch of St-Christophe St. between Ste-Catherine St. E. and 1278 St-Christophe St., until Oct. 14. St-Denis St. between Sherbrooke and Ste-Catherine Sts., and Émery St. between Sanguinet and St-Denis Sts., until Sept. 15. Ontario St. E. between Pie-IX Blvd. and Darling St. until Sept. 12. Bernard Ave. W. between Wiseman and Bloomfield Sts. until Sept. 21. De Castelnau St. E. between St-Denis St. and de Gaspé Ave. until Nov. 7. Du Musée St. between Sherbrooke St. and Docteur-Penfield Ave. until Oct. 13. St-Paul St. between Marché-Bonsecours St. and St-Laurent Blvd. until Oct. 31.
Hamilton Spectator
15-07-2025
- Politics
- Hamilton Spectator
Sheshatshiu youth walking to Gull Island to join Innu land defenders
Two Innu youth have begun a 125-kilometre walk from Sheshatshiu Innu First Nation to Gull Island in Labrador. Angel Jourdain McKay and Percey Montague are walking to highlight historical Innu connections to the region and advocate for the rejection of a proposed agreement between Innu leadership and Hydro-Quebec. The two began their walk from Sheshatshiu Monday and will be joined by supporters at different times throughout the walk. 'I believe that this is very important, as it draws roots to our culture. Someone I know personally was born in Gull Island,' Montague said Monday after starting the walk. 'I believe that this walk is a way for me to connect to my ancestors, who would have been trekking into and out of Sheshatshiu.' The pair was inspired to coordinate the walk after spending hours researching a proposed deal between Innu Nation and Hydro-Quebec. On June 20, Innu Nation—which advocates for the rights of Innu in Sheshatshiu and Natuashish—and Hydro-Québec announced what they are calling a 'Reconciliation and Collaboration Agreement'. In a media release, Innu Nation said the parties signed an agreement-in-principle to settle past grievances and ongoing litigation by Innu Nation surrounding the construction, operation and maintenance of the Churchill Falls Hydroelectric Complex — and to set out new principles for future developments. 'Innu negotiators were able to reach a fair agreement to address the damage this project has done to our culture, our way of life and our lands and we will be pleased to bring this to our members,' Innu Nation Grand Chief Simon Pokue said in the release. Under the agreement, Hydro-Québec would contribute $87 million over 16 years to Innu Nation, and provide the Innu with three per cent of the dividends that Hydro-Québec receives from Churchill Falls Corporation into the future. 'The agreement in principle also sets out terms for Hydro-Québec's collaboration with Innu Nation in the development of future facilities in the region, such as the Gull Island Power Generating Station,' the Innu Nation media release states. The agreement will be presented to the Innu of Labrador for ratification this fall. But before the potential ratification, Hydro-Québec spent millions of dollars to start geotechnical and environmental studies at Gull Island, a culturally important site Innu use throughout the year, including each fall when members of Innu communities in Quebec and Labrador unite for a gathering. Hydro-Québec halted work at Gull Island last week after a group of land defenders blockaded a road into the site. In a statement to The Independent, Hydro-Québec said it is closely monitoring this situation with openness and a full commitment to better understanding the concerns of the demonstrators and suspended the planned geotechnical work out of respect for the concerns raised. The power utility said it will continue dialogue with community representatives to understand their concerns and discuss next steps in a spirit of mutual respect. Innu Nation did not respond to an interview request from The Independent. After the deal was publicly announced, Jourdain McKay and Montague began sharing their thoughts on the matter via social media and their community radio station; they encouraged others to do the same. Montague said money is not as important as Innu culture, traditions and lands. 'I personally believe that the deal is not beneficial to the Innu people; I believe that our land should be more important than making money right now,' Montague said. 'I do believe that money could help both Innu communities, but I also believe that our culture is much more important. I'm worried that we'll keep losing our values and trading them for money.' Montague said the potential reservoir could destroy Innu hunting and gathering lands, and the history the land holds. As well, the deal only lasts for 16 years and will have long expired when Montague's own children have grown up, he said. 'A future where our governments don't sell our land for money is certainly a better future,' he added. Montague and Jourdain McKay will join the land defenders already at Gull Island. They represent a growing number of Innu speaking out against the proposed agreement. Jerome Jack of Sheshatshiu calls the proposed deal a 'slap in the face for the Innu people of Labrador.' He attended the Innu Nation Annual General Meeting in Natuashish on July 1, and the parallel event in Sheshatshiu on July 3. At both meetings, leadership discussed the proposed agreement with rights holders. Jack said two months isn't long enough to have consultations and study the proposed agreement. 'It's a really, really low ball—the deal that [Hydro-Québec] is trying to present to the Innu people. And what is more concerning to me is they're only giving Innu people two months to consider this deal, which is a very, very short amount of time.' Jack says the deal is being pushed through because members of Innu Nation's negotiating team are involved in businesses that wish to bid on the work that would happen at Gull Island — so the project would benefit some Innu far more than others. The Independent asked Innu Nation specifically about this allegation but did not receive a response. Jack said the meeting in Sheshatshiu ended when Innu Nation leadership and negotiators 'got up and walked out' prior to the traditional closing prayer at the end of government meetings. Jack said that disrespect is why he refuses to let them display the photograph of his late father Bart Jack at the Innu Nation office, and why he will be requesting to remove his grandparents' photographs as well. 'The way these individuals are behaving is like they have no moral respect for the people they're representing,' Jack said. 'They want us to make them look like they're knights in shiny armor, but they treat us like dirt. How can we have them represent us when they treat us like dirt?' Jack is calling for an immediate election for Innu Nation leadership prior to Innu voting on the agreement. At the AGM in Sheshatshiu earlier this month, Jack said a motion to call an election was put on the floor three times, and each time was ignored by leadership. Innu Nation has not responded to the allegation. 'All these negotiators—elected members—are going to be collecting money, raking in the money for themselves, and don't even care for the people that they represent,' Jack said. He hopes the Gull Island project waits a few more years so it can be done in the right way, and that Hydro-Quebec officials will visit Labrador to hold direct consultations with Innu community members. Chenille Rich, a 22-year-old mother from Natuashish, also hopes a vote on the proposed deal will be pushed back to allow Innu time to consider the terms and fully discuss the future with Elders. 'This deal, it happened all of a sudden. It was like a big smack in the face for every Innu, every Elder. They don't even talk to the Elders either,' she said. 'I don't get why they just want a quick paycheck and just destroy the land.' Ancestral burial sites were with the creation of the Upper Churchill Falls project in the 1960s, and Rich is worried a potential reservoir at Gull Island would flood more burial and other traditional sites. Rich grew up going out on the land with her grandmother and fears this would limit Innu children learning on the land in the future. She wants to see open communication about the proposed development, the inclusion of more Innu community representatives—including youth—and for agreements to take the form of ongoing treaties instead of strictly financial agreements. Rich said Innu Nation leaders were elected to do better for both communities, but 'this is not better.' She said it's more important to think about the land than the money. 'It makes you feel mad for the Elders, for the future children,' she said. Innu Nation did not grant The Independent an interview on Montague, Jourdain McKay, Jack and Rich's concerns. Montague said it has been disappointing to see Innu Nation not respond to media requests, and that he and Jourdain McKay's group of youth have also been trying to get a response from Innu Nation leadership without success. 'I believe that they should be more mature about the situation and actually try to respond to us,' Montague said. 'It's very telling of the type of leadership that we have. It's really disappointing as a young person to have to experience this. It feels like we're being ignored. It feels like we don't matter.' Error! Sorry, there was an error processing your request. There was a problem with the recaptcha. Please try again. You may unsubscribe at any time. By signing up, you agree to our terms of use and privacy policy . This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google privacy policy and terms of service apply. Want more of the latest from us? Sign up for more at our newsletter page .
Time Out
14-07-2025
- Climate
- Time Out
Montreal has broken an all-time daily rainfall record with over 150 mm of rain
Quebec has been hit by heavy downpours caused by severe thunderstorms, with more than 150 millimetres of rain per hour falling in the hardest-hit areas. In less than an hour, Montréal-Trudeau Airport recorded 57.5 mm of rain. At the peak of the storm, Hydro-Québec reported that nearly 100,000 customers were without electricity across the province. Some Montreal neighbourhoods recorded up to 80 mm of rain in a short period leading to flash flooding in several areas. It was a record-breaking amount of precipitation for Montreal during the month of July. The previous record for July 10, 2024, was when the remnants of Beryl swept through the province, recording 79.2 mm in one day. What was the rainiest day in Montreal history? August 9, 2024, became the rainiest day in Montreal's history, with 145 mm (5.7 inches) of rainfall as Hurricane Debby swept through the city. Is there a tornado warning in Montreal today? There are currently no alerts in effect for the Montreal area, however there is a heat warning in effect for Tuesday and Wednesday. High temperatures between 31 and 33 degrees celsius, combined with elevated humidity, will push humidex values close to 40. Nights will also remain warm, with lows ranging from 20 to 23 degrees celsius.
