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Read in this order
1
How your Alberta electricity bill works
An Alberta electricity bill has two halves: the energy charge (set by your retailer) and a delivery stack of regulated charges (set by the AUC and your municipality).
2
What is the local access fee?
A municipal franchise fee that piggybacks on your electricity bill. Most Albertans never notice it, but it can move the all-in price by 10 to 15 percent in some cities.
3
Delivery charges explained
Delivery is the half of your bill that no retailer can discount. Knowing how it is built tells you the floor under any quote.
4
What are rate riders and adjustments?
Rate riders are AUC-approved one-line corrections that true-up a regulated tariff after the fact. They appear and disappear from your bill without notice.
Read in this order
1
How to switch energy retailers in Alberta
Switching in Alberta is paperwork-only. There is no service interruption, no truck roll, no meter swap — just a billing handover that takes effect on your next read.
2
How to compare energy plans
Almost every Alberta retail offer looks the same at a glance. The difference is in three small numbers most marketing pages bury.
3
Fixed-rate vs variable (floating) rate plans
A fixed-rate contract locks in your per-unit price for a set term. A variable plan floats with the market. The right pick depends on where the forward curve sits when you sign.
4
What is a competitive energy retailer?
A competitive retailer sells the electricity or gas commodity contract that you choose. It does not own wires or pipes; it buys the commodity and bills you for it.
Read in this order
1
Setting up utilities when you move in Alberta
Your wires and pipes company is fixed by the new address. Your retailer is your choice. Most Albertans get this backwards and end up on the default rate by accident.
2
Alberta electricity distributors (wires companies)
Ten companies own the poles and wires that bring electricity to Alberta addresses. Your address picks yours; you cannot switch it.
3
Natural gas distributors in Alberta
Three large utilities — ATCO Gas North, ATCO Gas South, and Apex Utilities — plus dozens of municipal franchises and rural co-ops deliver gas across Alberta.
4
What is the Rate of Last Resort (RoLR)?
RoLR is the default electricity rate Albertans land on if they have not signed a contract. It replaced the Regulated Rate Option in 2025 and uses a longer purchasing window to smooth out price spikes.
Read in this order
1
How solar micro-generation works in Alberta
Alberta's Micro-Generation Regulation lets any home or business under 5 MW connect rooftop solar, export the surplus, and get paid for it on the same bill.
2
Net billing and export credits explained
Alberta does not use net metering in the strict sense. It uses net billing — a separate sell rate for exported kWh, set by your retailer and printed on every bill.
3
How to connect solar: the micro-generation application
The application is a short three-party form: installer, retailer, distributor. Knowing the order saves weeks of back-and-forth.
4
Choosing a retailer as a solar owner
Your import rate matters less than your export rate when you own solar. Three contract terms decide whether your panels pay you back in 8 years or 14.
Pick a question above to see a four-guide reading list.
Browse by topic
Each topic cluster sits on a real seam in the Alberta market — the regulators, the default rates, the bill, the gas side. Read top-to-bottom inside a cluster if you are new to it.
6 guides
How the Alberta energy market works
The structural map of Alberta's deregulated market: actors, regulators, system operator, and the wires and pipes companies that physically deliver the energy.
01
How Alberta's deregulated energy market works
Alberta is the only Canadian province with a fully deregulated retail electricity market. The wholesale market sets the pool price hour by hour; you pick a retailer.
02
Who's who in Alberta energy: AESO, AUC, UCA and retailers
Four acronyms run the Alberta energy market. Knowing which one to call when something breaks saves hours of dead-end phone tag.
03
What is the AESO and the pool price?
The Alberta Electric System Operator runs an hourly auction that sets a single province-wide wholesale price — the pool price. That number flows through to every default-rate bill.
04
Alberta electricity distributors (wires companies)
Ten companies own the poles and wires that bring electricity to Alberta addresses. Your address picks yours; you cannot switch it.
05
Natural gas distributors in Alberta
Three large utilities — ATCO Gas North, ATCO Gas South, and Apex Utilities — plus dozens of municipal franchises and rural co-ops deliver gas across Alberta.
06
What is the Alberta Utilities Commission (AUC)?
The AUC is the independent quasi-judicial regulator that approves every distribution and transmission tariff in Alberta, and decides whose name appears as the default supplier in each service area.
5 guides
Default rates and contract types
Every Alberta address is on a default rate until the customer picks a contract. These guides explain the Rate of Last Resort (RoLR), the gas Default Rate Tariff (DRT), and the contract types that replace them.
01
What is the Rate of Last Resort (RoLR)?
RoLR is the default electricity rate Albertans land on if they have not signed a contract. It replaced the Regulated Rate Option in 2025 and uses a longer purchasing window to smooth out price spikes.
02
RRO vs RoLR: what changed and why
The Regulated Rate Option (RRO) was renamed and rebuilt into the Rate of Last Resort (RoLR) to stop the monthly price swings that hit Alberta households during 2022 and 2023.
03
What is the Default Rate Tariff (DRT) for natural gas?
The DRT is the regulated default price for natural gas in Alberta. It is reset monthly and varies by service area — but unlike electricity, it has not been replaced.
04
Fixed-rate vs variable (floating) rate plans
A fixed-rate contract locks in your per-unit price for a set term. A variable plan floats with the market. The right pick depends on where the forward curve sits when you sign.
05
What is a competitive energy retailer?
A competitive retailer sells the electricity or gas commodity contract that you choose. It does not own wires or pipes; it buys the commodity and bills you for it.
3 guides
Switching, comparing, moving
The mechanics of changing retailer, comparing offers like-for-like, and setting up service at a new address — without disrupting your wires or pipes connection.
01
How to switch energy retailers in Alberta
Switching in Alberta is paperwork-only. There is no service interruption, no truck roll, no meter swap — just a billing handover that takes effect on your next read.
02
How to compare energy plans
Almost every Alberta retail offer looks the same at a glance. The difference is in three small numbers most marketing pages bury.
03
Setting up utilities when you move in Alberta
Your wires and pipes company is fixed by the new address. Your retailer is your choice. Most Albertans get this backwards and end up on the default rate by accident.
4 guides
Your electricity bill, line by line
Why an Alberta electricity bill has so many lines, what each one funds, and which ones you can actually influence by switching retailer.
01
How your Alberta electricity bill works
An Alberta electricity bill has two halves: the energy charge (set by your retailer) and a delivery stack of regulated charges (set by the AUC and your municipality).
02
What is the local access fee?
A municipal franchise fee that piggybacks on your electricity bill. Most Albertans never notice it, but it can move the all-in price by 10 to 15 percent in some cities.
03
What are rate riders and adjustments?
Rate riders are AUC-approved one-line corrections that true-up a regulated tariff after the fact. They appear and disappear from your bill without notice.
04
Delivery charges explained
Delivery is the half of your bill that no retailer can discount. Knowing how it is built tells you the floor under any quote.
4 guides
Rooftop solar and micro-generation
How Alberta's micro-generation regulation, net billing, and the application process actually work — plus how to pick a retailer that pays a competitive solar export rate.
01
How solar micro-generation works in Alberta
Alberta's Micro-Generation Regulation lets any home or business under 5 MW connect rooftop solar, export the surplus, and get paid for it on the same bill.
02
Net billing and export credits explained
Alberta does not use net metering in the strict sense. It uses net billing — a separate sell rate for exported kWh, set by your retailer and printed on every bill.
03
How to connect solar: the micro-generation application
The application is a short three-party form: installer, retailer, distributor. Knowing the order saves weeks of back-and-forth.
04
Choosing a retailer as a solar owner
Your import rate matters less than your export rate when you own solar. Three contract terms decide whether your panels pay you back in 8 years or 14.
4 guides
Your rights and where to get help
The Utilities Consumer Advocate, the AUC complaint pathway, affordability programs, and what to do when something goes wrong on your bill or contract.
01
What is the Utilities Consumer Advocate (UCA)?
The UCA is the free, government-funded office that represents residential, farm, and small-business customers in front of the AUC, and mediates billing disputes for you at no cost.
02
Your rights and how to file a complaint
A four-step escalation pathway covers almost every billing, service, and contract dispute. Skipping a step gets your complaint kicked back.
03
Energy affordability and rebate programs
Alberta has no single low-income energy program. The help you can get is scattered across the UCA, charities, the federal Canada Greener Homes pipeline, and municipal funds.
04
Rural Electrification Associations (REAs) and co-ops
REAs are member-owned distribution co-ops that wire much of rural Alberta. They predate deregulation and still set their own tariffs through the AUC.
2 guides
Edge cases and special territories
Two corners of the Alberta market that don't follow the standard rules: the Medicine Hat municipal monopoly, and how carbon pricing shows up on bills.
01
Why Medicine Hat is different
Medicine Hat owns its own electricity and gas utilities and sits outside the AUC tariff process. Residents do not have retail choice — and pay some of the lowest rates in the province.
02
Carbon pricing on your energy bill
The federal consumer carbon charge was removed in April 2025. What remains on Alberta bills are industrial carbon costs that flow through to commodity rates — quietly.
6 guides
How the natural gas market works
Alberta's natural gas market mirrors the electricity market's deregulated structure but with different defaults, units, and players. These guides cover the rate plans, the gigajoule, and how to pick a gas retailer.
01
How Alberta's deregulated natural gas market works
Alberta deregulated natural gas in 1985 — twenty years before electricity. The market structure is the same: a fixed distributor and a competitive retailer choice.
02
Fixed vs variable natural gas rate plans
Gas prices are far less volatile than electricity in Alberta, which changes the fixed-vs-variable calculation. The break-even logic looks nothing like power.
03
How natural gas is priced: understanding the gigajoule (GJ)
Alberta sells natural gas by the gigajoule, not the cubic metre. Knowing the conversion lets you spot offers that look cheap because they quote in different units.
04
Choosing a natural gas retailer in Alberta
A short framework for comparing gas retailers honestly: the per-GJ price, the monthly admin fee, the contract term, and the exit fee.
05
How to switch your gas provider
Switching gas retailers in Alberta is the same paperwork-only process as electricity. The handover takes one billing cycle and never involves the gas line.
06
Dual-fuel plans: bundling electricity and gas
Most Alberta retailers offer dual-fuel bundles. The bundle discount is usually small; the real savings come from picking the right rate type for each commodity.
6 guides
Gas bills, setup, and safety
Reading your gas bill, the franchise fee that lands on every Alberta address, getting service connected, what to do in a gas emergency, and the rural gas co-ops that serve the prairies.
01
How your Alberta natural gas bill works
The gas bill has the same energy-plus-delivery structure as electricity, but with different units, a franchise fee mechanic, and a smaller commodity share.
02
Natural gas delivery charges explained
Gas delivery is more than half of a typical Alberta bill. It is built from a fixed monthly charge plus a per-GJ variable charge — both AUC-approved and unaffected by which retailer you pick.
03
The gas franchise fee (municipal charge) explained
Cities and towns charge gas distributors a franchise fee for using their rights-of-way. The distributor passes the cost straight through to you, line-itemed on the bill.
04
How to set up or connect natural gas service in Alberta
Three different paths exist depending on whether the address already has a gas meter, has a service line but no meter, or is a brand-new build.
05
Reporting a gas leak / gas emergency
Smell sulphur? Leave the building first, then call the distributor — not the retailer, not 911 unless someone is hurt. The right sequence saves lives.
06
Rural natural gas co-ops in Alberta
Outside ATCO and Apex territory, rural Albertans are served by member-owned gas co-ops. They set their own rates and follow a separate AUC tariff process.
Across Canada
All Canada energy guides
See how every province's market works, plus the cross-Canada programs that apply wherever you live.
Frequently asked questions
For retail residential service, effectively yes. Ontario has a competitive retail layer on top of a regulated default price, but most households stay on the regulated rate. Every other province uses a Crown-corporation monopoly (BC Hydro, Hydro-Québec, Manitoba Hydro, SaskPower, NB Power) or a regulated private utility. Alberta is the one place where you actively pick the retailer who sets your kWh price.
The distributor (ATCO Electric, ENMAX Power, EPCOR Distribution, FortisAlberta, ATCO Gas, Apex, etc.) owns the wires or pipes that physically deliver energy to your address. It is set by your address and you cannot switch it. The retailer (ENMAX Energy, Direct Energy, ATCO Energy, Encor by EPCOR, Just Energy and dozens of others) sells you the commodity contract and bills you. You can switch a retailer any time.
You are placed on the Rate of Last Resort (RoLR) for electricity and the Default Rate Tariff (DRT) for natural gas. Service continues uninterrupted. You pay the regulated default rate plus a small administrative margin until you sign a competitive contract.
Your distributor, never your retailer. The distributor owns the wires and dispatches the trucks. Retailers have no operations staff. Save the distributor's 24/7 outage line on your phone before you need it.
Usually 5 to 15 percent of the energy half of your bill, depending on the offer and the wholesale market. The delivery half is regulated and identical no matter who you pick, so it never moves. The best comparison is always the rolling 12 to 24 month average of the default rate against the fixed offer you are being shown.
Ready to act
Compare current Alberta offers
Once you know how the market is built, comparing offers takes about ten minutes. Open the Alberta directory to see every licensed retailer and what each one is quoting today.