Ontario Imposes 25% Increase on Electricity Exports to the U.S. Amid Trade Dispute
Ontario, Canada’s most populous province, has announced a 25% increase in electricity export prices to 1.5 million American consumers in response to the trade war led by U.S. President Donald Trump. The decision, set to take effect on Monday, was reported by the Associated Press.
Ontario supplies electricity to the U.S. states of Minnesota, New York, and Michigan. During a press conference in Toronto, Ontario Premier Doug Ford warned that he would not hesitate to raise the fees further, even threatening to cut off electricity supply entirely if the U.S. escalates the trade conflict.
“I do not want to take this step,” Ford said. “I feel sorry for the American people, who are not responsible for this trade war. The sole responsible party is President Donald Trump.”
Despite Trump’s announcement of a one-month delay in trade war measures, Ford insisted that the new tariffs would remain in place, arguing that such a short delay only adds further uncertainty.
Quebec is also considering similar measures regarding its electricity exports to the U.S.
According to Ford’s office, all electricity generators selling power to the U.S. must now include an additional 25% fee. The Ontario government expects this tariff to generate daily revenues between 300,000 CAD ($208,000 USD) and 400,000 CAD ($277,000 USD), which will be used to support workers, families, and businesses in the province.
This new tariff comes on top of the Canadian federal government’s previous retaliatory measures, which imposed $30 billion CAD ($21 billion USD) in tariffs on American goods, including orange juice, peanut butter, coffee, household appliances, shoes, cosmetics, motorcycles, and paper products.
