Concern over power rates dominate Emera meeting
Posted Jun 8, 2012 05:38:30 AM.
This article is more than 5 years old.
Concerns about the optics of big executive bonuses and never-ending power rate hikes took over the agenda at Emera’s annual general meeting for shareholders in Halifax.
As shareholders in Nova Scotia Power’s parent company questioned top executives about the need for salary raises of up to 30 per cent, dozens of protesters chanted and waved placards outside on Thursday afternoon.
The Power to the People campaign is just the latest call for deprivatizion of the Nova Scotia Power.
“We can’t afford not to move back to public ownership at this point,” organizer Brian Krause told the Rick Howe Show. “We’ve seen over the last 20 years, since the privatization, huge sums of money leave the province every year. We’ve seen the province neglect green energy and sustainability. We’ve seen rates go up and Nova Scotians suffering.”
There were demonstrations in Halifax, Bridgewater and Sydney Thursday. They were just the latest in a string of planned protests leading up to the power company’s latest rate hike hearing in September.
Nova Scotia Power has applied to the Utility and Review Board for a three per cent rate increase in 2013 and in 2014. If granted, it will be the seventh rate hike in the last 11 years.
The proposed rate hike was just one of the issues stakeholders were questioning inside Emera’s annual general meeting.
The Herald reports there were also concerns about top executives receiving raises between 20 and 30 per cent. President and CEO Chris Huskilson’s take-home pay is now $2.99 million.
“There’s no double that the Emera executives are completely out of control. They are completely out of touch with reality and the pay scales of other executives for larger utilities,” environmental advocate Bruno Marccochio told the talk show. “I think we’re at a crossroads. We need the help of our provincial government to step in and do something.”
Liberal leader Stephen McNeil said some of the frustration Nova Scotians are feeling is due to the government’s inaction on this issue.
“We have a premier who is just shrugging his shoulders, throwing up his hands and saying ‘It is, what it is and we’re just going to have to live with it,'” said McNeil.
The Liberals have suggested several steps the NDP government could take to ease the burden of rising power bills, including removing the provincial efficiency tax, opening the market up to competition and ordering the UARB to carry out a performance audit of Nova Scotia Power.
