Ontario Electricity Rebate (OER)

The OER is a provincially funded rebate that applies as a credit on qualifying electricity bills and reduces the pre-HST costs on customers’ bills by 13.1% (O.Reg 363/16). The OER is for most households, farms, long-term care homes and small businesses. Eligible consumers automatically receive the rebate. The OER appears on your NT Power bill as a single line item displayed as Ontario Electricity Rebate.  

Update: Effective November 1, 2023, the OER is providing eligible consumers with a 13.1% rebate from the province on the subtotal of their electricity bill.

The OER is calculated on the base amount of the electricity bill, prior to applying Harmonized Sales Tax (HST). The base amount includes the electricity charge, delivery charge, and regulatory charge. It will exclude additional charges that may appear on bills such as late payment charges, or the provision of other services.

For customers who receive an Ontario Electricity Support Program (OESP) credit, the OER is calculated on the bill total, before the OESP is applied. 

Most eligible consumers will receive the OER automatically, including low-volume consumers such as homes and small businesses with a demand of less than 50 kilowatts. However, there are notice requirements in place for larger, multi-unit complexes and certain consumers who were previously receiving the 8% Provincial Rebate but are not eligible for the new OER.

If your account is not already automatically eligible as outlined above, please review the following expanded eligibility requirements below:

Effective July 1, 2022 (O. Reg. 216/22), the OER eligibility criteria was expanded to capture three additional types of customer accounts:

1. A “common element” of an eligible multi-unit complex    

Accounts that are at least partly in relation to any common elements of a multi-unit complex and that exceed the demand and use thresholds will qualify, as long as the complex is predominantly residential (specifically, the complex must contain at least two “qualifying units”, and at least 50% of the units in the complex must be qualifying units).

2. Retirement residences

The amendments add retirement residences to the list of eligible accounts. These are multi-unit complexes (other than long-term care homes, which were already eligible) where at least 50% of the units are occupied or intended to be occupied as a permanent residence by people aged 65 or older (who are not related to the operator of the complex), and where at least six people aged 65 or older live.

3. Mobile home parks

Mobile home parks, as defined in the Residential Tenancies Act, 2006, are also added to the list of eligible accounts. Trailer parks (such as facilities for seasonal use rather than permanent residence) continue to be excluded.

The following customers are eligible for the OER but need to complete the self-declaration form in order to receive the rebate:

Commercial customers (billed under a General Service Demand or Sub-transmission rate class) who:

1. have a demand for electricity greater than 50kW,
2. use more than 250,000 kWh a year, and
3. fall under one of the following eligibility criteria:
   • Farming Business
   • Long-term care home, other than an account that is also in respect of a hospital
   • Multi-unit complexes that are predominantly residential, such as condominium and apartment buildings
   • Common elements in multi-unit complexes that are predominantly residential (as of July 1, 2022)
   • Retirement residence (as of July 1, 2022)
   • Mobile home park (as of July 1, 2022).

If you have a large volume farm business, licensed long-term care home or a multi-unit complex which has a demand for electricity greater than 50kW and uses more than 250,000 kWh and you’re already receiving the OER you do NOT need to re-apply.*

*Note: Some customers with accounts for common areas, retirement residences or mobile home parks may have been receiving the OER under the legacy exemption set out in section 1.2 of the General Regulation, because they had been receiving the 8% Ontario Rebate for Electricity Consumer’s (OREC). Those customers will need to submit an OER Self-Declaration Form as the legacy exemption expired on October 31, 2022.

• Ontario Rebate for Electricity Consumers Act, 2016, S.O. 2016, c.19 https://www.ontario.ca/laws/statute/16o19
• The Ontario Government website has additional information about the OER.
• The Ontario Energy Board (OEB) updated its website to reflect the changes to electricity bills. Please see their Understanding Your Electricity Bill page for more information.

If you meet the eligibility criteria listed above, you should submit an OER Notice Form to NT Power.

However, if your electricity demand is 50 kilowatts or less or if your annual consumption is less than 250,000 kilowatt hours, you don’t have to complete the OER Notice Form. You’ll be automatically enrolled in the OER.

To apply for the OER, complete the OER Notice Form (PDF, 75 KB) and submit it according to the instructions on the form.