Business rates and charges

Rates update: As of January 18, 2022, the Ontario government set the price of electricity at a fixed off-peak rate of 8.2¢ per kWh for all customers paying TOU rates. This lower rate will be available 24 hours a day, seven days a week until end of day on February 7, 2022.

The OEB set new TOU rates for RPP customers effective November 1, 2021. These rates are listed in the following table, which also indicates the hours to which those rates apply.

These rates cover the cost of electricity purchased on your behalf. Toronto Hydro collects this cost from you, without mark-up, and pays it directly to our suppliers.

View the TOU holiday schedule

Rates update: As of January 18, 2022, the Ontario government set the price of electricity at a fixed off-peak rate of 8.2¢ per kWh for all customers paying Tiered rates. This lower rate will be available 24 hours a day, seven days a week until end of day on February 7, 2022.

The OEB set new tiered rates for RPP customers effective November 1, 2021. These rates are listed in the following table, which also indicates the thresholds to which those rates apply.

These rates cover the cost of electricity purchased on your behalf. Toronto Hydro collects this cost from you, without mark-up, and pays it directly to our suppliers.

Most General Service customers with a monthly demand greater than 50 kW – who don’t have a contract with a retailer – pay the wholesale electricity price and Global Adjustment electricity charge. Toronto Hydro collects both charges from you, without mark-up, on behalf of the Independent Electricity System Operator (IESO).

Customers with interval meters are charged the Hourly Ontario Energy Price (HOEP), which is the hourly price that’s charged to Toronto Hydro, for their electricity consumption. Customers without interval meters are charged a weighted average hourly price based on consumption patterns of similar consumers. Customers may also choose a contract offered by a licensed electricity retailer.

You may choose to purchase your electricity from another company by entering a contract with a licensed electricity retailer. Your contract specifies a fixed electricity price for a set number of years. Unlike Toronto Hydro's rates, the fixed price is not regulated by the OEB. Please visit the OEB's Retail Energy Contracts page for more details.

Refer to the following tables for current rates and charges. For an explanation of the charges and credits, please refer to the list of terms and definitions at the bottom of the page.

Refer to the following tables for current rates and charges. For an explanation of the charges and credits, please refer to the list of terms and definitions at the bottom of the page.

Refer to the following tables for current rates and charges. For an explanation of the charges and credits, please refer to the list of terms and definitions at the bottom of the page.

Refer to the following tables for current rates and charges. For an explanation of the charges and credits, please refer to the list of terms and definitions at the bottom of the page.

Refer to the following tables for current rates and charges. For an explanation of the charges and credits, please refer to the list of terms and definitions at the bottom of the page.

Refer to the following tables for current rates and charges. For an explanation of the charges and credits, please refer to the list of terms and definitions at the bottom of the page.

Effective July 1, 2010, a Harmonized Sales Tax (HST) of 13% is applied to electricity bills. The implementation of HST is mandated by the Province of Ontario. For information on HST, please visit the Ontario Ministry of Revenue or call the HST hotline at 1-800-337-7222.

The provincial government announced a decrease in the OER from 18.9% to 17.0%, effective November 1, 2021. The Ontario government introduced the OER as an expanded rebate providing bill relief that will be applied to customer bills, largely offsetting price changes on the electricity line. The rebate will be applied to bills for most residential consumers, farms and many small businesses.

Learn more about the OER

These charges are applied to current customers who have an unmetered electric water heater billed by Toronto Hydro on a flat rate basis. Toronto Hydro no longer offers this flat rate billing option for new customers.

As of May 1, 2002, flat rate (unmetered) water heater energy usage is billed on an estimated average daily kWh basis. Your estimated usage is determined by the size of your water heater, the wattage of the water heater electric elements and on the number of days in the billing period. If you have an unmetered electric water heater, you’re being billed on the higher tiered rate of the Regulated Price Plan.

If you have any questions, please visit our contact page to reach us by phone or using our online contact form.

As a customer, you may receive charges for other specific services. View a list of specific service charges that may be applied to your bill statement.

Customer Charge

The Customer Charge covers, together with the Distribution Charge, the costs Toronto Hydro incurs to deliver electricity to your business, building and maintaining the distribution system, administration and billing.

Distribution Volumetric Rate

The Distribution Charge, together with the Customer Charge, covers the costs Toronto Hydro incurs to deliver electricity to your business, build and maintain the distribution system, administration and billing.

Transmission Charge

The Transmission Charges are variable charges based on a per kWh or kW basis, depending on the rate class. These charges include the Network and Connection charges, and cover the costs involved in transmitting electricity from generators to the city. Toronto Hydro passes this cost through to you, without mark-up.

Transformer Allowance for Ownership (if applicable)

Transformer Allowance to those customers that own their transformation facilities.

Rate riders

Rate riders are temporary costs or credits on utility bills. The rate rider is a mechanism used to flow through costs that are incurred by a distribution utility or refunds provided to the distribution utility, that were not included in its tariff distribution rates at the time those rates were approved by the OEB. All rate riders must be approved by the OEB before they are applied to customer bills

Disposition of Accounts Receivable Credits

This credit (refund) reflects a number of historical small final credit balances that did not receive a refund cheque.

Disposition of Derecognition Variance Account

This credit (refund) balance reflects the variance between approved versus actual capital-related revenue requirements for Derecognition expenses.

Disposition of Expansion Deposits

This credit (refund) reflects excess expansion deposits.

Disposition of Stranded Meter Assets

This credit (refund) to the customers is related to stranded costs associated with removal of conventional meters.

Disposition of Wireless Pole Attachment Revenue

This credit (refund) is associated with wireless pole attachments.

Recovery of Monthly Billing Transition Costs

This charge captures the incremental costs and savings resulting from the mandatory transition to monthly billing for residential and GS <50 kW class customers.

Smart Metering Entity Charge

On March 1, 2018, the Ontario Energy Board approved a decrease in the Smart Metering Entity Charge to be collected from General Service < 50 kW customers effective April 1, 2018, on behalf of the Smart Meter Entity (SME). This charge, which is applied on a per 30-day basis, recovers the costs incurred by the SME to collect, manage, store and retrieve information related to the metering of General Service < 50 kW customers’ electricity usage in Ontario.

Standard Supply Service – Administration Charge (if applicable)

This is an administration charge of $0.25 stated on a 30-day basis. If your billing period is different than 30 days, the RPP administration charge will be prorated accordingly. This is a service charge for customers who haven’t contracted with an electricity retailer for their energy supply.

Wholesale Market Service Charge

This charge covers costs such as market regulation and management of the system. Toronto Hydro collects this charge, without mark-up, on behalf of the Independent Electricity System Operator (IESO).