The Government of the Northwest Territories has introduced a temporary, short-term subsidy to help offset the cost of electricity rate hikes for some residents.

The subsidy is in place from Feb. 1, 2026 to March 31, 2028, the government said in a news release issued Tuesday.

It will apply in communities where rates were set to rise by more than 15 per cent over 2023-2024 costs.

Specifically, it will be applied to electricity bills for residents who live in:

• Communities where electricity is more expensive to produce, such as those that rely mainly on diesel or other fuel-based generation.
• The South Slave communities served by the Taltson hydro system.

The subsidy will appear automatically on customer bills, the government said.

“This support ensures residents in the communities facing the greatest cost increases receive meaningful relief during a period of adjustment,” Finance Minister Caroline Wawzonek said in the release.

“Our goal is to help households and businesses manage these changes while maintaining a reliable and sustainable electricity system.”

The move follows the N.W.T. government’s cancellation of a $48 million fund, unveiled in December 2024, that would have given the Northwest Territories Power Corporation up to $12 million per year for four years to help offset rate hikes. 

New rates took effect Feb. 1

The government’s initial aim was to cap electricity rate increases at 15 per cent after the power corporation announced in October 2024 that it was looking to increase them by around 18 per cent due to “major issues” beyond its control.

The government cancelled the fund when the power company sought to amend its terms, according to documents filed with the Public Utilities Board last August.

The power corporation subsequently told the utilities board that the cancellation left it with no way to cover its costs unless it hiked power rates by 18.8 per cent for 2025-26.

Electricity rate changes took effect on Feb. 1, 2026, following a review by the Public Utilities Board.

The changes reflect increased costs linked to several factors, including wildfire impacts, system upgrades and the need to recover revenue not collected while the rate application was under review, the government said in a backgrounder issued to media.

Without the subsidy, fuel-powered, or thermal, communities would have experienced a 33 per cent rate increase, the territory said in its Tuesday news release. The new subsidy will limit the increase to eight per cent.

Taltson hydro system communities would have experienced a 62-per-cent increase without the subsidy. The subsidy will limit it to 14 per cent.

Bills in Snare system communities are only expected to increase by eight per cent, the government said, so the subsidy will not apply to them.

The territory will be subsidizing Naka Hydro’s wholesale bill, it said, so that higher costs are not passed on to residents.

The Northwest Territories Power Corporation is the main generator and transmitter of power in the N.W.T. It sells part of its power to Naka Power which, in turn, sells it to residents and businesses in the Hay River and Yellowknife areas. In most of the rest of the territory, the corporation also distributes the power it generates.