Central Albertans won’t benefit from a Natural Gas rebate in November.
The province announced Tuesday that with the highest monthly default natural gas rate being $5.641 per gigajoule in November, the rebate in the 2022 budget will not be triggered. The rebate was only to be triggered if rates exceeded $6.50 gigajoule between Oct. 2022 and March 2023.
The exact rebate amount that Albertans would receive depends on the default natural gas rate each month.
More than 1.6 million Albertans would be eligible for the rebate, including consumers connected to the natural gas distribution system and those not connected to the natural gas distribution system but using natural gas, propane, kerosene or heating oil for heating purposes.
In Alberta, the default regulated rates are set for the entire month and do not fluctuate. Rates are approved by the Alberta Utilities Commission and not determined by the government.
In the release, the province said the rebate program is ready and in place to support families and businesses should natural gas prices spike this winter.