Toronto Hydro
 |
|
| Electric utility | |
| Predecessor | Toronto Hydro-Electric Commission |
| Founded | 1998 |
| Headquarters | 14 Carlton Street, Toronto |
|
Area served
|
Toronto, Ontario, Canada |
|
Key people
|
|
| Revenue |
 $3,539.9 million CAN (total revenue) (2015) |
|
$126.7 million CAN (after net movements in regulatory balances) (2015) |
|
| Total assets |
$4,696.9 million CAN (total assets and regulatory balance)(2015) |
| Total equity |
$1,340.9 million CAN (total equity) (2015) |
| Owner | City of Toronto |
|
Number of employees
|
1,480 (2015) |
| Subsidiaries | Toronto Hydro-Electric System Limited Toronto Hydro Energy Services Inc. |
| Website | torontohydro.com |
Toronto Hydro is the largest municipal electricity distribution company in Canada, serving approximately 756,000 customers in the city of Toronto. It distributes approximately 19% of the electricity consumed in the Province of Ontario.
Toronto Hydro has been serving the City of Toronto for over a century.
1910s: Electricity first came to Toronto in the late 1880s. A number of private companies were formed to meet demand. In 1908, Torontonians voted overwhelmingly for the formation of a municipal electricity company. Toronto Hydro-Electric System was introduced on May 2, 1911 at Old City Hall.
1920s: Toronto Hydro merged with the private electricity companies in the 1920s, leading to a 95 per cent increase in the number of meters and a 200 per cent increase in the kilowatt-hours sold. Further demand came from an approximate 50 per cent rise in appliance sales.
1930s: Demand for electricity decreased for the first time during the Depression. In order to protect jobs, unionized workers agreed to reduce their work hours to 40 hours per week. While some layoffs were necessary, those jobs were offered back to employees when electricity consumption picked up in 1940.
By Toronto’s centennial in 1934, Toronto had approximately 920 kilometres (km) of paved streets, 880 km of which were lit by electricity. In 1937, Toronto Hydro sold more than 1 billion kWh for the first time in its history.
1940s: Toronto Hydro appealed to customers to conserve energy during World War II. Electricity consumption for signs, show-windows, displays and advertising was banned. Street lighting was reduced by approximately 20 per cent and daylight saving time was extended throughout winter to reduce the afternoon peak electrical load. The increased efficiency created a profit that Toronto Hydro passed down to its customers in temporary rate reductions.
1950s: Between 1945 and 1955, Toronto’s kilowatt-hour consumption increased by 75 per cent. This was due to the post-war baby boom and increased immigration. Toronto Hydro raced to keep up, building 12 new electrical substations throughout the city. The electrical system was converted from 25 Hertz (cycles per second) to 60 Hertz and over 200,000 meters were replaced.
1960s: The convenience of electricity was heavily promoted. As a result, electricity use grew at home and in the workplace. Between 1964 and 1974, Toronto Hydro spent more than $31 million to put overhead wires and transformers underground.
1970s: As environmentalism grew, Toronto Hydro introduced a variety of energy conservation programs and incentives to customers.
The building boom of the late 1960s meant that in 1970, Toronto Hydro’s peak load increased 5.6 per cent over the previous year. New additions to the Toronto skyline including CN Tower, First Canadian Place, the Royal Bank Plaza and Hydro Place added over 44,500 kW of demand to the grid.
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Wikipedia