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- calendar_today October 15, 2026
Energy Board Report Finds Nova Scotia Power Fails to Meet All Benchmarks
A recent report by the Nova Scotia Energy Board (NSEB) shows that Nova Scotia Power (NSP) has again failed to meet all required performance standards, with particular shortcomings related to power outages and customer service. Despite this, the report also notes that the utility's overall performance in 2025 showed improvement compared to the previous year.
NSEB Holds Off on Penalty, Citing Improvement
The NSEB reviewed NSP's performance against established criteria but decided not to impose an administrative penalty. The board highlighted that such penalties are designed to encourage compliance and not to punish or seek broader reparation. The panel noted, "An administrative penalty is intended to promote compliance, not to serve a punitive purpose or for redressing a wrong done to society at large," according to their annual performance standards report.
Cyber Attack Cited as Cause for Performance Issues
NSP attributed some of its challenges in meeting targets to a cyber attack the company experienced the previous year. Ongoing efforts to recover from the cyber incident have influenced NSP's service delivery and operations. As a result, the energy board chose to defer its decision on this matter until the release of next year's performance standards report. The NSEB is also conducting ongoing investigations into other aspects of the utility's operations, with additional findings expected in the future.
Key Areas of Missed Standards
The report identified several performance standards where NSP did not meet expectations in 2025. Among these were the number and length of power outages and timely responses to consumer complaints. Although there was noted improvement overall compared to 2024, the energy board highlighted an increase in planned outages: "The number of planned outages increased in 2025 to 1,749 from 1,666 in 2024. The number of planned outages in both years is much greater than the 467 planned outages in 2022."
Customer Service and Staffing Concerns
Customer service continues to be a recurring concern. Representatives of small business users pointed out to the NSEB inconsistencies regarding the number of customer care representatives employed to manage the influx of calls that followed the cyber attack. While NSP reported hiring 40 additional customer care representatives, the advocate pointed to board information suggesting that only four such hires occurred in 2025. NSP responded that the total number of employees does not fully capture representative availability and service levels.
Input from Stakeholders and Ongoing Monitoring
The preparation of the report included comments from a variety of stakeholders, such as a small business advocate, a consumer advocate, the provincial Department of Energy, and an industrial group of power users. In particular, the consumer advocate submitted that 2025 marked the ninth consecutive year in which the power utility failed to achieve one or more of its performance standards.
The NSEB's findings and ongoing investigations into NSP's operations, as well as deferred decisions related to the cyber attack, suggest continued scrutiny and anticipation of further reporting in the coming year.
Source: cbc.ca.
