OTTAWA – Today, Hydro Ottawa Holding Inc. released its 2019 Annual Report, showcasing the company’s diverse brands and the successful milestones that were achieved in each of its business lines.
Hydro Ottawa Holding Inc. owns and operates three primary subsidiaries: Hydro Ottawa Limited, which distributes electricity across the nation’s capital; Energy Ottawa Inc. (operating under the Portage Power brand), which generates 128 megawatts of clean renewable energy annually; and Envari Holding Inc., which offers large-scale sustainable energy solutions for businesses, governments and utilities.
Board Chair, Jim Durrell, C.M., ICD.D, and President and Chief Executive Officer, Bryce Conrad, presented the company’s 2019 results during the Annual General Meeting today with Ottawa City Council.
Overall, Hydro Ottawa’s core mandate remains the same: to provide a safe, reliable, affordable, and sustainable supply of electricity to approximately 340,000 homes and businesses that rely upon it every day; and to ensure a more sustainable energy future for its community.
Quick Facts
- Hydro Ottawa’s 2019 consolidated net income was $32.5 million.
- In accordance with the City Council-approved dividend policy, Hydro Ottawa’s dividend payment to the City is $22.6 million this year, which will be used by the City to fund municipal programs and services.
- Hydro Ottawa ranked third for operational efficiencies (lowest costs per customer) among large distributors in Ontario.
- Hydro Ottawa maintained strong reliability throughout 2019 by leveraging technology and automation to ensure quick power restoration and minimal customer impact. Outage duration in 2019 was at the lowest level in the past seven years. On average, Hydro Ottawa customers had power 99.985 per cent of the time in 2019.
- Envari continued to diversify and grow its revenue streams by 13.4 per cent. Having successfully converted more than 50,000 City of Ottawa streetlights to LED since 2016, Envari was awarded a contract for LED streetlight conversion by the Town of Renfrew. Envari was also approved to manage the cogeneration system upgrade at Ottawa’s wastewater collection and treatment plant, and increased revenues and its customer base for Cable Q (a subsidiary of Envari that offers non-destructive cable testing).
- Hydro Ottawa continued to enhance the customer experience by improving the quality and capacity of its website, and meeting rising expectations for service quality. Notably, the utility maintained a 94 per cent overall customer satisfaction score, which is the highest level in the past decade. With half of its customers going paperless, Hydro Ottawa has the highest e-billing participation rate among Ontario distribution utilities.
- Hydro Ottawa’s employee-driven charitable campaign raised more than $390,000 with funds directed to support both the Rose Ages Breast Health Centre at The Ottawa Hospital and United Way Ottawa.
- Hydro Ottawa also continued to be a responsible and engaged corporate citizen by offering programs that help customers conserve energy, hosting open houses to discuss neighbourhood planned work projects, and sponsoring or participating in more than 460 community events.
Quotes
“At Hydro Ottawa, we never lose sight of what’s important, and that’s the safety and well-being of our customers and employees. People are the reason why we continue to focus on operational cost efficiencies and lowering our outage duration numbers to the lowest in seven years. Our desire for continuous improvement and providing exceptional care through our services is driven by innovation, accessibility and our commitment to deliver the greatest value for our community.”
- Jim Durrell, C.M., ICD.D, Chair, Board of Directors
“We are an organization that excels in times of crisis. That was true during the 2017 floods that impacted our generation facilities along the Ottawa River, the 2018 tornadoes, and it’s true today as we adapt our operations and business to the realities of the COVID-19 pandemic. As an organization, we have put in the work to ensure we are resilient and prepared to respond quickly and effectively to these uncontrollable events. Every day reminds me that we have a remarkable team that puts the safety and well-being of our customers and community first.”
- Bryce Conrad, President and Chief Executive Officer
Media contact:
Josée Larocque
Manager, Media and Public Affairs
Hydro Ottawa
Tel: 613-738-5499 ext. 2345
[email protected]