Understanding your bill with billing demand
Every bill is different. That’s because the amount to pay depends on your electrical installation’s power demand (greater than or equal to 50 kW) and how much electricity you’ve used.
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Reference numbers
- Account No.: Needed when you pay the bill.
- Bill No.: Every bill has a different number. It may be useful if you contact us about the bill.
- Customer No.: Use this number to identify yourself when you contact us.
You will also need your customer number and a bill number to create your Customer Space.
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Your billing address
- Identification: Account holder, either a person or company.
- Address: Address where your bill is sent.
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Account summary
Transactions since your last bill: account balance prior to current bill, payments made, credits and amount due.
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Useful information
Message of general interest or information about our services.
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Summary of this bill
Electricity costs, taxes, charges (if any) and amount of bill.
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Customer services
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Payment stub
Total amount due and due date.
Return the stub with your payment if you pay by mail.
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Reference numbers
- Account No.: Needed when you pay the bill.
- Bill No.: Every bill has a different number. It may be useful if you contact us about the bill.
- Customer No.: Use this number to identify yourself when you contact us.
You will also need your customer number and a bill number to create your Customer Space.
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Details of service address and contract number
Service address, contract holder and contract number.
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Details of electricity use
Period covered by bill, number of days, meter serial number, new and preceding meter readings and the amount by which they are multiplied to calculate your energy consumption (kWh) in the period.
In this example
New meter reading (08187) − previous reading (08065) = kilowatthours used (122) × multiplier (80) = kilowatthours used (9 760)
Note: To calculate power demand in kilovolt-amperes (kVA) and kilowatts (kW), you don’t need to calculate the difference between the current and previous reading, since power demand is reset after each reading.
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Details of demand
Billing demand may be based on real power or apparent power. Real power, expressed in kW, is the electricity used to operate equipment such as lights, a heating system or a motor. Apparent power, expressed in kVA, is the maximum quantity of electricity that Hydro‑Québec must supply to its customers to ensure proper functioning of their equipment.
In this example:
Minimum demand: 33,5 kilowatts (kW)
Minimum billing demand, i.e., 65% of the highest demand during a consumption period falling entirely within the winter period.
Real power: 51,5 kilowatts (kW)
The largest real power demand during the consumption period.
Apparent power: 51,5 kilovoltamperes (kVA)
The highest apparent power demand during the consumption period.
90% of apparent power: 46,4 kilowatts (kW)
90% of the largest apparent power demand (90% x 51,5 = 46,4 kW)
Power factor: 100,0 %
The power factor is the ratio of real power demand to apparent power (51,5 ÷ 51,5 = 100,0 %).
Load factor: 25,5 %
The load factor is the ratio of actual energy consumption in kWh to the maximum power demand multiplied by the number of hours in the consumption period. In other words, it’s the ratio of the energy consumption over a given period to the number of kilowatthours that would have been consumed if maximum power had been drawn over all hours in the period (9 760 kWh ÷ (51,5 kW x 744 hours) = 25,5 %).
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Reference numbers
- Account No.: Needed when you pay the bill.
- Bill No.: Every bill has a different number. It may be useful if you contact us about the bill.
- Customer No.: Use this number to identify yourself when you contact us.
You will also need your customer number and a bill number to create your Customer Space.
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Details of costs
Detailed calculation of the cost of power demand and electricity used, based on applicable rates and number of days, credits or other charges (if applicable) plus taxes. The total is carried over to page 1, under the heading Summary of this bill.
In this example
Billing demand: 51,5 kW
How is billing demand determined?
Your billing demand is the higher of the following two values:
- minimum billing demand (33,5 kW)
- maximum power demand, which corresponds to either
- real power (51,5 kW), or
- 90% of apparent power (46,4 kW), whichever is higher
Billing demand = 51,5 kW (real power) > 46,4 kW (90% of apparent power) > 33,5 kW (minimum billing demand)
Demand provided for in rate: 50,0 kW
Demand is billed only if your power demand exceeds 50 kW.
Cost of power demand
The cost of power, based on billing demand in excess of 50 kW.
51,5 kW (billing demand) − 50,0 kW (demand provided for in rate) = 1,5 kW (cost of power demand)
Total consumption: 9 760 kWh
Kilowatthours used in billing period = 9 760 kWh
Up to 1 200 kWh per month
Energy used, up to the product of 1 200 kWh per month in the billing period (1st tier). The total of 1 240 kWh is calculated as follows:
1 200 kWh × 31 days (days in billing period) ÷ 30 days (monthly period)
Remaining kWh
Electricity used beyond first tier (2nd tier). Here’s how it’s calculated:
9 760 kWh (kilowatthours used) − 1 240 (kilowatthours calculated in 1st tier) = 8 520 kWh
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Compare to last year
New table that compares a number of variables with the same period last year: number of days in period, total electricity use, average daily use, average outdoor temperature and electricity cost.
A personalized message tells you whether your average daily electricity use is higher, lower or similar to that of the same period last year.
You can see your electricity use in kilowatthours or in dollars and note how it changes from hour to hour using the Energy Performance Indicator in your Customer Space.
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Electricity consumption history
Information on your electricity use over the past year: period, number of days in the consumption period, total consumption, average daily consumption, billing demand and electricity cost.