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23-571: Toronto Hydro Corporation is an electric utility that operates the electricity distribution system for the city of Toronto , Ontario , Canada. As of 2018, it serves approximately 772,000 customers and delivers approximately 19% of the electricity consumed in 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

46-530: A 65-metre tall wind turbine at Exhibition Place in partnership with the Toronto Renewable Energy Co-operative (TREC). Toronto Hydro launched its first smart meter projects in 2005 to approximately 500 customers, and, in 2010, started transitioning customers to Time-of-Use rates to help them better manage their electricity bills. 2010s: In 2011, Toronto Hydro launched various social media channels, which has given its customers

69-535: A great deal of private investment. The success in Nicaragua may not be an easily replicated situation however. The movement was known as Energiewende and it is generally considered a failure for many reasons. A primary reason was that it was improperly timed and was proposed during a period in which their energy economy was under more competition. Globally, the transition of electric utilities to renewables remains slow, hindered by concurrent continued investment in

92-494: A profit that Toronto Hydro passed down to its customers in temporary rate reductions. 1950s: Between 1945 and 1955, Toronto's kWh 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

115-858: Is also more likely to attract executives experienced in working in competitive environments. In the United States, the Energy Policy Act of 1992 removed previous barriers to wholesale competition in the electric utility industry. Currently 24 states allow for deregulated electric utilities: Ohio, Oklahoma, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Texas, Virginia, Arizona, Arkansas, California, Connecticut, Delaware, Illinois, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Montana, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, and Washington D.C. As electric utility monopolies have been increasingly broken up into deregulated businesses, executive compensation has risen; particularly incentive compensation. Oversight

138-482: Is inherently independent of more traditional sources of energy, the market seems to have a very different structure. In the United States, to promote the production and development of alternative energies, there are many subsidies, rewards, and incentives that encourage companies to take up the challenge themselves. There is precedent for such a system working in countries like Nicaragua. In 2005, Nicaragua gave renewable energy companies tax and duty exemptions, which spurred

161-658: Is low and can be released when the grid needs a boost. In 2016, Toronto Hydro installed the world's first pole-top energy storage unit. The unit's lithium-ion batteries charge during off-peak hours and then discharge energy to Toronto Hydro's grid during peak hours. In 2017, Toronto Hydro launched Power Lens ®, an online platform allowing customers to view how their homes use electricity so that they can take steps towards conservation and saving. The Ontario Energy Board approved Toronto Hydro's 2015-2019 rates application. Over this five-year period, Toronto Hydro has secured more than $ 2 billion in capital funding that it will use to meet

184-458: Is typically carried out at the national level, however it varies depending on financial support and external influences. There is no existence of any influential international energy oversight organization. There does exist a World Energy Council, but its mission is mostly to advise and share new information. It does not hold any kind of legislative or executive power. Alternative energy has become more and more prevalent in recent times and as it

207-475: The French company EDF was the world's largest producer of electricity. An electric power system is a group of generation, transmission, distribution, communication, and other facilities that are physically connected. The flow of electricity within the system is maintained and controlled by dispatch centers which can buy and sell electricity based on system requirements. The executive compensation received by

230-439: The ability to interact with the organization in a variety of convenient ways. In 2013, Toronto Hydro started construction on the new Clare R. Copeland Transformer Station, the first underground station in downtown Toronto. In 2015, Toronto Hydro unveiled Hydrostor, the world's first underwater compressed air energy storage system, located three kilometres off Toronto Island. This “underwater battery” stores electricity when demand

253-414: The companies themselves cutting corners and costs for profits which has proven to be disastrous in the worst-case scenarios. This placed a strain on many other countries as many foreign governments felt pressured to close nuclear power plants in response to public concerns. Nuclear energy however still holds a major part in many communities around the world. Utilities have found that it isn't simple to meet

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276-451: The distribution system. As Toronto Hydro moved to digital, other organizations followed suit. The introduction of desktop computers, printers, networks and photocopiers meant additional demand. 1990s: On January 1, 1998, Bill 103 amalgamated six municipal electric utilities into one, nearly tripling Toronto Hydro's customer base to approximately 650,000 customers. In January 1998, approximately 350 employees helped restore power following

299-777: The executives in utility companies often receives the most scrutiny in the review of operating expenses . Just as regulated utilities and their governing bodies struggle to maintain a balance between keeping consumer costs reasonable and being profitable enough to attract investors, they must also compete with private companies for talented executives and then be able to retain those executives. Regulated companies are less likely to use incentive-based remuneration in addition to base salaries. Executives in regulated electric utilities are less likely to be paid for their performance in bonuses or stock options . They are less likely to approve compensation policies that include incentive-based pay. The compensation for electric utility executives will be

322-490: The expansion of fossil fuel capacity. Nuclear energy may be classified as a green source depending on the country. Although there used to be much more privatization in this energy sector, after the 2011 Fukushima district nuclear power plant disaster in Japan, there has been a move away from nuclear energy itself, especially for privately owned nuclear power plants. The criticism being that privatization of companies tend to have

345-538: 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, the city 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 of electricity for

368-475: The first time in its history. 1940s: During the Second World War, Toronto Hydro appealed to its customers to conserve energy. 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

391-461: 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 (kWh) sold. Further demand came from an approximately 50 per cent rise in appliance sales. 1930s: Demand for electricity decreased for

414-772: The growing demand for electricity, to safeguard against extreme weather events and upgrade aging infrastructure. Toronto Hydro has been recognized with the following awards: Electric utility Electric utilities include investor owned , publicly owned , cooperatives , and nationalized entities. They may be engaged in all or only some aspects of the industry. Electricity markets are also considered electric utilities—these entities buy and sell electricity, acting as brokers, but usually do not own or operate generation, transmission, or distribution facilities. Utilities are regulated by local and national authorities. Electric utilities are facing increasing demands including aging infrastructure , reliability, and regulation. In 2009,

437-452: The ice storm in eastern Ontario and southern Quebec. Crews worked 12 to 20 hours a day and coped with harsh conditions and unfamiliar equipment. In 1999, the City of Toronto became Toronto Hydro's sole shareholder when the utility incorporated. 2000s: In 2001, Toronto Hydro began powering 100 vehicles with low-sulphur diesel and soy-based biodiesel fuel. In December 2002, Toronto Hydro built

460-679: The lowest in regulated utilities that have an unfavorable regulatory environment. These companies have more political constraints than those in a favorable regulatory environment and are less likely to have a positive response to requests for rate increases. Just as increased constraints from regulation drive compensation down for executives in electric utilities, deregulation has been shown to increase remuneration. The need to encourage risk-taking behavior in seeking new investment opportunities while keeping costs under control requires deregulated companies to offer performance-based incentives to their executives. It has been found that increased compensation

483-689: The previous year. New additions to the Toronto skyline, including the CN Tower, First Canadian Place, the Royal Bank Plaza and Hydro Place, added over 44,500 kW of demand to the grid. 1980s: In the 1980s, Toronto Hydro became the largest municipal electricity distribution utility in Canada. The organization introduced a customized Supervisory Control and Data Acquisition system (SCADA), which enabled operators to accurately and remotely monitor

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506-613: The unique needs of individual customers, whether residential, corporate, industrial, government, military, or otherwise. Customers in the twenty-first century have new and urgent expectations that demand a transformation of the electric grid. They want a system that gives them new tools, better data to help manage energy usage, advanced protections against cyberattacks, and a system that minimizes outage times and quickens power restoration. Investor-owned utility Investor-owned utilities ( IOUs ) are private enterprises acting as public utilities . This business-related article

529-447: 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

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