Nova Scotia Power explains estimated billing as customers charged hundreds more than usual

Jim Harpell is dumbfounded when he looks at his power bills from this year.

Harpell received an estimated bill of $2,755.78 for service between July and September of this year — much higher than the two previous bills he received since Nova Scotia Power was hit by a cyberattack in March.

The statement for service between May and July was $110.42, while the previous bill for the period of September 2024 to May of this year was $304.31, says the longtime resident of Shortts Lake, N.S.

“It’s just obvious highway robbery,” Harpell told CBC. “There’s no other word for it.”

As customers like Harpell wonder how exactly Nova Scotia Power is calculating estimated bills, the utility provided a brief explanation on Dec. 23 for the first time since the cybersecurity breach earlier this year.

The utility said in a report that its response to the attack was "effective and executed in a timely manner," and that it is committed to restoring trust with customers. There were approximately 375,000 customers impacted by the breach, according to Nova Scotia Power.

The report was submitted to the province's energy board in response to questions the board raised about how the utility has been determining estimated bills.

Nova Scotia Power said in the report that historical billing data is used to determine estimated bills, and it's working to enhance its privacy rules.

The utility did not respond to CBC's interview request prior to publication.

The provincial utility's response doesn’t make sense to Haprell when he looks at his bill for nearly $2,800. The monthly usage for September 2024 said 343 kilowatts on his bill, while the estimated energy used for September of this year came in at 13,367 kilowatts.

“How can anybody in their office look at that bill and say, ‘this sounds logical. This sounds as if it's plausible,’” he said.

80 per cent of customers received estimated bill in June

Nova Scotia Power officials have said all smart meters should be reconnected by March 2026.

The utility hasn’t been able to read a significant amount of meters since the breach.

The report to the energy board noted that when Nova Scotia Power lost the ability to communicate with smart meters, the billing system reverted to a contingency that estimates bills based on seasons.

The report added that the utility has been using the average usage per day over the last 12 months of the same season. The contingency breaks down the year between warm (May to October) and cold (November to April) seasons.

Calculating a bill based on average seasonal usage can protect customers from drastic changes in the weather. However, the report said there is potential for significant variances in billing when moving into the warm season (April to May) and into the cold season (October to November).

Nova Scotia Power said in the report that more than 75 per cent of customers were on estimated billing as of last May. That number rose to above 80 per cent by June.

Only 0.54 per cent of bills were estimated prior to the cyberattack this year, the report said.

Daniel Duplisea received a bill for his cottage near Shelburne, N.S., for $1,305 in July.

“It was quite shocking because my annual bill is usually like $800,” he said.

Duplisea's monthly bill is typically around $100 when his family uses the cottage. He knew something was problematic when his next bill in September had an amount of $1,329 owing, he said.

Since Nova Scotia Power claims to be using historical data to estimate bills, Duplisea doesn't understand why the utility can't be more accurate.

“They're clearly struggling to get a handle on this and they seem unable to do it,” he said. “Why can't they just adjust my bill?”

Bills based on meter reading much lower

Nova Scotia Power has completed approximately 70 per cent of the work to reconnect all smart meters across the province, according to the report submitted to the energy board.

Since the cyberattack, the report said more than 56 per cent bills — 1,357,559 — have been estimated.

Harpell finally received his first power bill based on a reading of his meter since March in November, and it was $40.26.

MORE TOP STORIES