3.24

On March 6, 2024, the British Columbia Utilities Commission (“BCUC”) accepted BC Hydro’s Integrated Resource Plan (“IRP”) and associated orders that will support its electricity system over the next two decades.

BC Hydro first filed the application in December 2021 and in June of 2023 submitted an updated IRP to better reflect the changing energy environment and to ensure the application would meet the future electricity needs of its customers. This updated IRP included changes to its load forecast, load scenarios, resource balances and short-term actions.

The application went through a thorough public review process including seventeen interveners and thousands of information requests in which the BCUC determined that BC Hydro’s IRP is in the public interest and aligns with the BC government’s energy objectives. In accepting the plan, the BCUC has indicated that it finds both BC Hydro’s long-term demand forecast, and the plans to meet that demand, reasonable. 

The BCUC’s decision provides much-needed clarity to long-term utility planning in the province and will be a precedent for other utility boards facing similar challenges in reviewing long-term resource plans during the energy transition.

Lawson Lundell represented BC Hydro throughout the review. Lawson Lundell’s team included Ian Webb, Clara Ferguson, Jeff Christian, Keith Bergner, and Natasha Sanders.

Read the full BCUC decision HERE.