BILL 73

An Act to Amend the Electricity Act

Her Majesty, by and with the advice and consent of the Legislative Assembly of New Brunswick, enacts as follows:

1 Section 143.1 of the Electricity Act, chapter E-4.6 of the Acts of New Brunswick, 2003, is amended

(a)  by repealing subsection (2) and substituting the following:

143.1(2) The Nuclear Corporation shall establish and maintain the accounts, books and records that are necessary to record the costs and expenses incurred by the Nuclear Corporation during the out of service period, other than those costs and expenses recorded as capital costs of the project.

(b)  in subsection (3) of the French version by striking out “liés au projet”;

(c)  by repealing subsection (4) and substituting the following:

143.1(4) The Generation Corporation shall establish and maintain the accounts, books and records that are necessary to record the costs and expenses, as determined in accordance with the regulations, that are related to the supply of electricity by it to the Distribution Corporation that, but for the project, would in the normal course have been supplied to the Distribution Corporation by the Nuclear Corporation from electricity generated at the Point Lepreau nuclear generating station during the out of service period.

(d)  by repealing subsection (7) and substituting the following:

143.1(7) The Distribution Corporation shall establish and maintain a deferral account that records

(a)  the costs and expenses referred to in subsection (2) after deducting any revenues referred to in subsection (3), and

(b)  the costs and expenses referred to in subsection (4).

(e)  in subsection (8) of the English version by striking out “expenditures” and substituting “expenses”;

(f)  by repealing subsection (9) and substituting the following:

143.1(9) The Board shall ensure that the balance in the deferral account, plus any financing costs incurred by the Distribution Corporation in relation to the balance in the deferral account,

(a)  is recovered by the Distribution Corporation over the operating life of the refurbished Point Lepreau nuclear generating station, and

(b)  is reflected in the charges, rates and tolls charged by the Distribution Corporation.

(g)  in subsection (10) by adding “and the financing costs referred to in subsection (9)” after “subsection (7)”.

2 Section 149 of the Act is amended

(a)  in subsection (1) by adding after paragraph (l) the following:

(l.1)  determining the costs and expenses under subsection 143.1(4) and prescribing the methodology, modelling and assumptions that are to be used to determine those costs and expenses;

(b)  by adding after subsection (3) the following:

149(4) A regulation made under paragraph (1)(l.1) may provide that it has retroactive application to a date not earlier than March 28, 2008.

3 This Act shall be deemed to have come into force on March 28, 2008.