• The Quebec Minister of Energy and Natural Resources has announced that Hydro-Québec customer refunds, which will take the form of rebates on Hydro bills, will be millions more than expected.
• The National Assembly outlined the rebate system in December 2019.
• Get all the eligibility details below.
• Visit MTLBlog for more headlines.

According to a statement from the Quebec Minister of Energy and Natural Resources, the Ministry now projects that Hydro-Québec refunds will consists of a total of $535 million. That's $35 million more than the $500 million Hydro initially anticipated it would return to its customers when the National Assembly adopted loi 34 in December 2019. That law established a rate freeze as of April 1, 2020, as well as rebates for customers who overpaid under a previous rate system.

The repayments will take the form of credits on affected customers Hydro accounts.

"The amount of the rebate, calculated on the basis of electricity consumption, will be applied as a credit on future bills," the Ministry makes clear in this latest announcement.

"People who are no longer Hydro-Québec customers but who were subscribers in 2018, 2019 or both years will receive their credit in the form of a cheque."

"Bill 34 materializes a government commitment to simplify the electricity rate-setting process in order to make it more predictable," a press release states.

"A rate freeze is in effect for the year 2020 and rates are now set according to the inflation rate for subsequent years. This allows consumers to make forecasts over a five-year period, at the end of which the Régie de l'énergie, through a rate case, will set rates."

"Any person or company that received an electricity bill in 2018 or 2019 will receive a credit," Hydro states on its website.

[rebelmouse-image 26887118 photo_credit="Hydro-Qu\u00e9bec" expand=1 original_size="1200x900"] Hydro-Québec

"If you are still a Hydro‑Québec customer, you will automatically receive a credit on one of your bills by the end of April 2020. You don’t need to do anything."

Hydro allegedly overcharged customers over one billion dollars between 2008 and 2013.

Premier François Legault campaigned on the promise to return that surplus to its customers. 

A class-action lawsuit against Hydro is currently underway in Quebec courts and seeks an almost complete refund.

More information on the rebates and customer eligibility is available on the Hydro-Québec website.

More information on loi 34 and the latest news about rebates is available here and here.