The full, official, legal name of each company is given.
This list is known to be incomplete (I'm working on it).
Where it appears below, "NSL" refers to the Nova Scotia Legislature.
Unless otherwise stated, "Act" means an Act of the Nova Scotia Legislature.
Contents:
• # Privately-Owned Electric Utility Companies
• # Government-Owned Electric Utilities
• # Renewable-Energy Electric Companies
• # Notes
• # Recent additions to this list
NSL 1883 chapter 64 — Act to incorporate the Acadia Coal Co.
NSL 1898 chapter 165 — Amendment, relating to electric power
The Acadia EL Co. reported that, during the year
1912, its operating revenue was $7,168.55 and operating expenses were
$5,362.64, and it paid out $1,600.00 in dividends.
Source: PUB Annual Report 1912-13
By 1917, the steam-driven electric generating plant of the Acadia Electric Light Company in Wolfville was 26 years old. Its maximum output was 55 kilowatts, the service operated only seven hours out of twenty-four, and, according to an ancient townsman (who was interviewed by Harry Bruce in the mid-1970s) "You could hardly see the light bulbs even when you turned them on," — translation: the voltage was well below the proper level which meant that the generating plant was overloaded, or the distribution circuits were inadequate, or both.
The Wolfville Board of Trade (whose secretary, incidentally, was George C. Nowlan, a federal cabinet minister forty years later) decided somebody had to do something about the electricity supply in Wolfville. It asked two of the sharpest young businessmen around town to investigate the Gaspereau River as a power source.
They were Charles H. Wright, a capable and popular building contractor, and Roy A. Jodrey, farmer, apple speculator, and fair-haired boy of the W.H. Chase organization. L.E. Shaw, a brick manufacturer who was also president of the Wolfville Board of Trade, wrote many years later that Jodrey and Wright "never came back to report. They found more than we had anticipated."
They found a waterfall, formed a company (Gaspereaux River Light, Heat & Power Company), built a dam, installed a powerhouse, and built electric transmission lines out across the Annapolis Valley. Wright and Jodrey's hydroelectric generating plant at Stivers Falls, White Rock, Kings County, began to operate on February 25, 1920. By May 1920, it was producing electric power for Wolfville, Greenwich, and Port Williams...
Source: Excerpted from pages 114 and 119, The Story of R.A. Jodrey, Entrepreneur (book), by Harry Bruce, McClelland and Stewart, 1979
NSL 1887 chapter 94 — Act to incorporate the Amherst Electric Light & Water Co. Ltd.
Nova Scotia Joint Stock Registry numbers 1038957 and 2231779.
In the 1920s, the Associated Gas & Electric Company of New York was busily buying Nova Scotia utilities.
Source: Page 137, The Story of R.A. Jodrey, Entrepreneur (book), by Harry Bruce, McClelland and Stewart, 1979
The Associated Gas & Electric Co. was broken up in the mid-1930s, under the U.S. Public Utility Holding Company Act of 1935, which provided for the regulation of utility holding companies by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).
Title I of the Public Utility Act of 1935 is known as the Public Utilities Holding Company Act of 1935 (PUHCA). PUHCA was enacted to eliminate unfair practices and other abuses by electricity and gas holding companies by requiring federal control and regulation of interstate public utility holding companies. A regulatory bargain was created between utilities and the government. In exchange for an exclusive service territory, utilities are required to provide reliable electric service to all customers at a regulated rate. A holding company under PUHCA is an enterprise that directly or indirectly owns 10% or more of stock in a public utility company. To eliminate the complex and confusing structure of holding companies that had made them almost impossible to regulate, Section 11b of Title I (the "Death Sentence Clause") of PUHCA abolishes all holding companies that were more than twice removed from their operating subsidiaries. All electric and natural gas holding companies are required to register with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). Under PUHCA, the SEC regulates mergers and diversification proposals of holding companies whose subsidiaries engage in retail electricity or natural gas distribution. In addition, PUHCA requires that before purchasing securities or property from another company, a holding company must file for approval with the SEC.
NSL 1916 chapter 96 — Act to incorporate the Atlantic Power & Development Co. Ltd.
NSL 1923 chapter 121 — Act respecting the Avon River Power Co. Ltd.
In 1921, the Avon River Power Company was incorporated by Roy Jodrey and Charles Wright. The company had its head office in Windsor.
The Avon River Power Co. bought the Windsor Electric Light
& Power Co. in November 1925, and the Gaspereaux River Light, Heat
& Power Co. in 1926.
In April 1929, the Nova Scotia Light & Power Co. bought
Avon River Power Co. and thereafter operated it as a wholly-owned
subsidiary.
During 1931, the Avon River Power Co. bought six small electric utilities:
Centreville Electric Light & Power Company,
Gaspereaux Valley Electric Light Company,
Lower Horton Electric Company,
Kingston Electric Light Commission,
the Town of Middleton's electric power system, and
Sheffield Mills Light & Power Company.
In August 1941, the Avon River Power Co. bought the electric
power distribution system owned and operated by the Canning Water
Commissioners.
NSL 1919 chapter 139 — Act to incorporate the Barrington Electric Co. Ltd.
Also see: Barrington MunicipalityThe Barss Corner EL Co. was incorporated on 23 June 1921. The BCEL Co. was purely a distributing company, meaning it did not generate any electric power; it purchased all of its electric power from J. Zwicker & Son of New Germany.
NSL 1899 chapter 137 — Act to change the name of the Bear River Electric Light, Heating & Power Co to the Bear River & Digby Electric Light, Heating & Power Co.
Also see: Bear River Electric Light, Heating & Power Co. Ltd.NSL 1899 chapter 137 — Act to change the name of the Bear River Electric Light, Heating & Power Co to the Bear River & Digby Electric Light, Heating & Power Co.
Also see: Bear River & Digby Electric Light, Heating & Power Co. Ltd.
NSL 1898 chapter 133 — Act to incorporate the Bedford Electric Co. Ltd.
NSL 1899 chapter 136 — Amendment
NSL 1901 chapter 171 — Amendment
NSL 1903 chapter 182 — Amendment
NSL 1906 chapter 156 — Amendment
NSL 1908 chapter 137 — Amendment
NSL 1909 chapter 131 — Amendment
NSL 1897 chapter 111 — Act to incorporate S.P. Benjamin Co. Ltd.
NSL 1900 chapter 165 —
This photograph appears on page 152 of "White Rock Past and Present"
by Doris Atwell, published 2004
This postcard was postmarked in Kentville in September 1915.
The photograph is believed to have been taken some years before 1915.
Located where the Black River flows into the Gaspereau River, White Rock – often called White Rock Mills – has seen numerous mill operations, including that of S.P. Benjamin. About 1885 Benjamin bought out the Calder and Freeman mill along with much of the timberlands upriver and around the lakes. Running day and night with 75 men employed, in one year his operation shipped seven million board feet of lumber out of nearby ports. The route travelled by horse and ox teams over the Deep Hollow Road (paved now but not then) to Wolfville, Canning and Port Williams was no easy haul.
— Historic Kings County (booklet), Kings County Historical Society, 2004
A PUB report dated 30 June 1927 states that:
Mr. Norman Bethune, owner of the plant, told the PUB that the
generating equipment consists of one 15 horsepower oil engine
[probably a single-cylinder Diesel (compression-ignition) engine]
belted to a ten kilowatt Direct Current [DC] 110-volt
generator. The distribution system includes 1.5 miles [about
2.4 km] of line carried for the most part on poles owned by the
Maritime Telegraph & Telephone Company, only fourteen poles having
been supplied by Mr. Bethune.
[Comment: Since this was a DC system, there were no transformers anywhere – the entire system operated at the generator voltage. A system operating at 110 volts DC could not serve customers located 1.5 miles from the generating plant – the voltage drop would be excessive – thus it can be inferred that the generating plant was located roughly at the geographic center of the service area, with distribution lines radiating in at least two directions, east and west, and probably in four directions, so that no customer would be much more than about 2000 feet [600 metres or so] from the generator. Even with this arrangement, the distribution system would not have been able to supply electricity to the farthest customer at satisfactory voltage. A ten kilowatt generator supplying 110 volts will be delivering about 90 amperes. Assuming the distribution system radiated in four directions, with the load divided equally among all four lines (the most favourable arrangement), each circuit would be carrying more than 20 amperes, and the voltage drop would be dramatic even over a distance of two or three blocks. Mr. Bethune's DC system, as he well knew, was not capable of reaching even to the town outskirts, but this was a startup operation, financed on a shoestring, and it was good enough to bring electric lights to the area for the first time.]
The PUB report continues: The total capital cost of plant installed
to date, including land and buildings, is approximately $4,000.
The system has been in operation for five months and has at present
23 consumers connected with the expectation of serving a total of
40 consumers, together with nine 60-watt street lights.
The operating expenses for the five months amounted to
$640.00, prorated for twelve months would total $1536.00. To this
should be added for interest, depreciation and return on investment
$480.00, making a total required annual income of $2016.00 (for a
sustainable continuing operation).
The revenue for the five months was $395.64, which would
amount to about $950.00 for the year, less than one-half the return
Mr. Bethune is entitled to. While slightly more than
one-half of the prospective consumers are at present being served, it
is doubtless true that the most profitable part of the load is
connected and the balance when connected will not yield revenue in as
great a proportion, while additional fuel cost will further increase
the operating costs...
However, Mr. Bethune has expressed a willingness to forego an
adequate return during the time the load is being built up, and it is
the feeling of the Board (that Mr. Bethune should be permitted to
continue his electric utility service)...
— Source: PUB Annual Report 1925, pages 117-118
NSL 1901 chapter 147 — Act to incorporate the Blockhouse Electric Light & Power Co. Ltd.
NSL 1888 chapter 132 — Act to incorporate the Bridgetown Electric Light Co. Ltd.
Also see: Bridgetown Electric Light & Power Co. Ltd.Electric utility companies were required to report annually to the PUB, certain basic statistics such as operating revenue, operating expenses, taxes, debt, and the like. For the year 1912, the Bridgetown EL Co.'s statistics are missing in the PUB Annual Report, and the note "burned out" appears on that line. There is no further information; this note may mean that there was a fire in the company's office and its records were destroyed.
NSL 1898 chapter 148 — Act to incorporate the Bridgetown Electric Light, Heat & Power Co. Ltd.
Also see: Bridgetown Electric Light Co. Ltd.NSL 1898 chapter 150 — Act to incorporate the Bridgetown Water, Power & Light Co. Ltd.
Also see: Bridgetown Electric Light Co. Ltd.
NSL 1891 chapter 148 — Act to incorporate the Bridgewater Electric Light, Water, & Power Co. Ltd.
NSL 1898 chapter 158 — Act to confirm the sale of the Bridgewater Electric Light, Water, & Power Co.
NSL 1897 chapter 103 — Act to incorporate the Bridgewater Power Co. Ltd.
NSL 1898 chapter 158 — Act to confirm the sale of the Bridgewater Electric Light, Water, & Power Co.
NSL 1889 chapter 128 — Act to incorporate the Canada Electric Co. Ltd.
NSL 1898 chapter 167 — Act to authorize the Company to sell property to the Town of Amherst
NSL 1913 chapter 166 — Amendment
Her Majesty the Queen . . . . 2500 preferred shares
Her Majesty the Queen . . . . 8970 common shares
George I. Smith . . . . . . . 5 common shares
Harvey W.L. Doane . . . . . . 5 common shares
Ronald G. Smith . . . . . . . 5 common shares
J. Craig MacDonald . . . . . . 5 common shares
Roderick J. McSween . . . . . . 5 common shares
William L. Jodrey . . . . . . 5 common shares
----
Total 9000 common shares
2500 preferred shares
Source: 1961 Annual Report of the Public Utilities Board, pages 86-87
This generating plant was located on the north side of Harrison Lake
GPS location: 45°42'54"N 64°16'57"W
Google map
NSL 1914 chapter 181 — Act to incorporate the Canadian Provincial Power Co. Ltd.
NSL 1915 chapter 93 — Amendment
NSL 1918 chapter 128 — Amendment
NSL 1919 chapter 164 — Amendment
NSL 1911 chapter 113 — Act to incorporate Canadian Tungsten Mines Ltd.
NSL 1912 chapter 187 — Amendment
NSL 1912 chapter 188 — Amendment
NSL 1913 chapter 173 — Amendment
NSL 1914 chapter 182 — Amendment
NSL 1914 chapter 183 — Amendment
NSL 1915 chapter 94 — Amendment
In 1911 a company was incorporated under the name of
The Canadian Tungsten Mines Limited, which name was afterwards changed
more than once, and in 1913 it was called The Halifax Power Company
Limited. The Act of incorporation gave legal authority to the company
to engage in certain business activities, which included mining of
scheelite and tungsten, transportation of freight and passengers on
land or water from places in Nova Scotia, and the authority to
"generate, sell and deliver, electricity or electric energy generated
from steam or water power, and to build and maintain dams and make use
of water power, and generate, sell and deliver, energy generated from
water power."
Source: Excerpted from the decision of the Nova Scotia Supreme Court dated 18 September 1913, on the appeal of Miller versus Halifax Power Co. Ltd. and Thomson versus Halifax Power Co. Ltd., as reported on pages 394-408 of the Eastern Law Reporter, volume XIII number 5, 24 December 1913, published by the Carswell Company, Toronto.
Total pole line in service (April 1922) about 11 miles, from the point of connection with Gaspereaux River Light, Heat & Power Company near Port Williams, to the customers in the serviced territory. Canard EL&P Co. never operated a generating plant, and bought its electric power wholesale from Gaspereaux River LH&P Co. Beginning in 1923, Canard EL&P Co. sold electric power wholesale to Centreville EL&P Co.
NSL 1893 chapter 158 — Act to incorporate the Canning Water & Electric Light, Heating & Power Co. Ltd.
NSL 1894 chapter 93 — Amendment
NSL 1900 chapter 130 — Act to incorporate the Cape Breton Electric Tramway & Power Co. Ltd.
NSL 1901 chapter 159 — Change name to Cape Breton Electric Co. Ltd.
NSL 1902 chapter 183 — Amendment
NSL 1909 chapter 136 — Amendment
NSL 1911 chapter 115 — Amendment
NSL 1917 chapter 197 — Amend chapter 130 of 1900
NSL 1900 chapter 130 — Act to incorporate the Cape Breton Electric Tramway & Power Co. Ltd.
NSL 1901 chapter 159 — Change name to Cape Breton Electric Co. Ltd.
Cape Breton Tramways Ltd. operated an electric streetcar system within the Town of Glace Bay and an interurban line (public transit electric railway) between Glace Bay and Sydney. On 29 September 1944, Cape Breton Tramways Ltd. transferred all its property to the Cape Breton Bus & Tram Co.
The Cape Split Development Company was created in 1916 with a four-fold purpose:
• to examine the economic viability of the development of a hydroelectric power plant at Cape Split;
• to obtain an engineer's report;
• to carry out experimental work; and
• to raise the capital necessary to complete the project.
After raising its initial capital by selling shares, the company hired the services of the New York consulting engineers Bogart and Pohl, whose report emphasized the growing need for hydroelectric power in the Maritimes and the suitability of the Cape Split site for the generation of said hydroelectric power. Also hired was the consulting engineer Charles M. Allen, who conducted experiments on the efficiency of the Clarkson Current Motor prototype, which the company hoped to use, and gave an extremely favorable report. All was ready for the beginning of construction at the Cape Split site, except for the necessary capital. Unfortunately, the initial $31,000 raised through the selling of shares was the sum total of all of the company's capital, so the project fell through.
In 1928, the property was sold to Minas Basin Pulp and Paper, although the right to develop power on the property was retained by the company. This right was deeded to the Nova Scotia Power Commission in 1957.
Sources:
http://library.acadiau.ca/archives/research/acadia_archives/NSPC.pdf
http://library.acadiau.ca/archives/research/acadia_archives/Moir_Alexander.doc
NSL 1872 chapter 96 — Act to incorporate the Carboline Gas Light Co. Ltd.
On 23 July 1923, Centreville EL&P Co. received official approval to issue 60 shares of common stock at a par value of $50.00 each, to raise $3,000 to pay for construction of its transmission line from "A.S. McDonald's corner, where connection is made with the Canard Electric Light & Power Co., into the district of Centreville, a distance of 2.3 miles [3.7km]. Construction materials included 90 cedar poles with cross arms and insulators, 2888 pounds [1307kg] of line wire, and seventeen 10-ampere kW·h meters." In July 1923, seventeen consumers were connected, "with the prospect of eight additional later". Centreville EL&P Co. never operated a generating plant. From the beginning in 1923, Centreville EL&P Co. bought its electric power wholesale from Canard EL&P Co. Canard EL&P Co. bought its electric power wholesale from Gaspereaux River Light, Heat & Power Co. In 1931, the Centreville EL&P Co. was sold to the Avon River Power Company.
NSL 1889 chapter 130 — Act to incorporate the Chambers Electric Light & Power Co. Ltd.
NSL 1894 chapter 101 —
NSL 1901 chapter 172 — Amendment
NSL 1904 chapter 177 — Amendment
Section 6 of chapter 130 of the Acts of 1889, as amended, reads as follows: The Chambers Electric Light & Power Company "is hereby empowered to erect and place upon and along the streets, ways, and other necessary places and highways in the town of Truro, and also in the county of Colchester, poles or other necessary supports with wires thereon for the transmission of electric currents for purposes of the company's business, but not to interfere with the Nova Scotia Telephone or Western Union Telegraph wires now erected in Truro, and no person or corporation shall erect or place any electric light or other wires within three feet 90 cm of the wires of the company."
Source: Excerpted from the Nova Scotia court decision by J. Ritchie dated 21 November 1913, on the action by the Town of Truro versus Chambers Electric Light & Power Company, as reported on pages 443-450 of the Eastern Law Reporter, volume XIII number 6, 15 January 1914, published by the Carswell Company, Toronto.
NSL 1888 chapter 129 — Act conferring certain powers upon the Chandler Electric Co. Ltd.
NSL 1890 chapter 202 —
NSL 1910 chapter 128 — Act to incorporate the Chester Light, Power & Water Co. Ltd.
NSL 1924 chapter __ — Act to incorporate the Chester Light & Power Co. Ltd.
The Chester L&P Co. was incorporated in 1924, by Foreman Hawboldt, Carrol Manning, Roy Hennigar, Harold Hilchie, Owen Zinck, and Eugene Publicover. In November 1924, the Chester L&P Co. had 73 electricity meters in service, which indicates it had 73 paying customers.
In 1928, Chipman's Corner EL&P Co. bought $408.20 worth of energy from Avon River Power Co.
Source: Page 123, The Story of R.A. Jodrey, Entrepreneur (book), by Harry Bruce, McClelland and Stewart, 1979
Cobequid Power Co. never operated a generating plant. When it started in business, it purchased all its electric power from The Falls hydroelectric generating station in Colchester County, owned and operated by the Northumberland Light & Power Co. To get this power from The Falls to its service area, it erected a 4-wire 3-phase 12.5 kV transmission line from The Falls 17.5 miles to Stewart's Bridge in Colchester County, and thence toward Truro. This transmission line bringing electric power from The Falls was the sole source of supply for the Cobequid Power Co. until 1 October 1933, when Cobequid ceased to draw its power from The Falls, and began purchasing it from the Truro Electric Commission. At that time, the transmission line became unnecessary to Cobequid's operation, and in May 1934 Cobequid applied to the PUB to sell part of this line, the 17.5 miles from the Falls to Stewart's Bridge, to Northumberland L&P Co. This transaction was complicated by the fact that this portion of the line served not only for transmission of wholesale electric power, but also supplied two domestic (residential) customers along the route. After extensive examination of the situation, on 27 July 1934 the PUB denied the application to sell the line.
NSL 1911 chapter 120 — Act to incorporate the Dartmouth & Cow Bay Electric Co. Ltd.
NSL 1914 chapter 170 — Amendment
NSL 1889 chapter 132 — Act to incorporate the Dartmouth Gas & Electric Light & Heating & Power Co. Ltd.
NSL 1920 chapter 181 — Amendment
The Dartmouth GELHP Co. was incorporated on 17 April 1889, under chapter 132 of the 1889 Acts of the Legislature. On 25 February 1935, official approval was given by the PUB for the Dartmouth GELHP Co. to sell its entire property, assets and undertaking to the Nova Scotia Light & Power Co.
NSL 1861 chapter 76 — Act to incorporate the Dartmouth Gas Light & Water Co. Ltd.
NSL 1890 chapter 189 — Act to incorporate the Dartmouth Tram & Power Co. Ltd.
NSL 1867 chapter 55 — Act to incorporate the Dartmouth Water & Gas Co.
The Digby EL Co. reported that, during the year 1912, its operating
revenue was $5,941.68 and operating expenses were $5,324.52, and it
paid $108.87 in taxes.
Source: PUB Annual Report 1912-13
On 14 June 1922, the Digby EL Co. received official approval
from the PUB to sell the whole of its undertaking to the Town of Digby.
Source: PUB Annual Report 1922
Incorporated on 20 May 1913 as Waterford Public Utilities Co. Ltd.
Nova Scotia Joint Stock Registry number 1000914.
Name changed 24 November 1921 to Dominion Utilities Co. Ltd.
NSL 1882 chapter 61 — Act to incorporate the Eastern Development Co. Ltd.
NSL 1883 chapter 71 —
NSL 1884 chapter 71 —
NSL 1885 chapter 99 —
NSL 1886 chapter 141 —
NSL 1890 chapter 181 — To extend powers, as to Gas Works and Water Works, etc.
Incorporated on 26 January 1911 as Sydney Mines Electric Co. Ltd.
Nova Scotia Joint Stock Registry number 1000776.
Name changed 9 June 1931 from Sydney Mines Electric Co. Ltd.
By Order In Council dated 9 June 1931, the name of the Sydney Mines Electric Co. Ltd. was changed to Eastern Light & Power Co. Ltd., with head office in Sydney.
On 30th December 1966, all of the outstanding shares of Eastern Light & Power Company Limited were purchased by the Nova Scotia Power Commission at a cost of $3,900,000.
— Nova Scotia Power Commission Annual Report 1966, page 12
Eastern Utilities Limited was a holding company (it owned shares of other companies), not an operating utility company – it did not own any generating plants or transmission lines or any other equipment used in the production and/or distribution of electric power, it did not deliver electricity to anyone, and it did not send bills to electric power consumers. Eastern Utilities Limited was incorporated in Prince Edward Island; it is included in this history of Nova Scotia electric companies because it owned companies in the electric power business in Nova Scotia — Canada Electric Co. Ltd., Maritime Coal, Railway and Power Co. Ltd., and Joggins Coal Co. Ltd. (all three based in Cumberland County, Nova Scotia).
May 1940: Eastern Utilities Limited is an investment holding Company which owns all the issued shares of Canada Electric Company Limited; The Eastern Electric and Development Company Limited; and with the exception of 33 shares, all of the 11,254 shares (par value $100) of the Moncton Electricity and Gas Company Limited; also the majority of common (voting) shares of Maritime Coal, Railway and Power Company Limited; and all the issued shares of Joggins Coal Company Limited.
The Managing Director of Eastern Utilities Limited is J.H. Winfield of Halifax. Other directors are: Hon. F.B. McCurdy, P.C. of Halifax; L.A. Lovett, K.C. of Halifax; Hon. C.W. Robinson of Moncton; and H.A. Forsythe, M.M. King, and M.K. Bell of Charlottetown.
Source: a prominent display advertisement in the Kentville Advertiser,
9 May 1940, by Johnston and Ward, a large Montreal brokerage firm, offering for sale shares of Eastern Utilities Limited. "The statements contained herein are based on information which we believe to be reliable..."
NSL 1892 chapter 155 — Act to incorporate the Edison Electric Light & Power Co. Ltd. of Springhill
NSL 1914 chapter 151 — Amendment
NSL 1902 chapter 137 — Act to incorporate the Egerton Tramway Co. Ltd.
NSL 1903 chapter 234 — Amendment
NSL 1904 chapter 133 — Act respecting assessment of the Egerton Tramway in New Glasgow, Stellarton, and Westville
NSL 1906 chapter 160 — Amendment
NSL 1909 chapter 142 — Act to confirm contract between New Glasgow Electric Co. Ltd. and Egerton Tramway Co. Ltd.
NSL 1909 chapter 143 — Amendment and name changed
NSL 1910 chapter 163 — Amendment
NSL 1916 chapter 105 — Amendment
NSL 1921 chapter 160 — Act to incorporate the Electric Association of Nova Scotia
Incorporated as 3021211 Nova Scotia Limited on 23 July 1998.
Name changed to NS Power Holdings Incorporated on 11 September 1998.
Name changed to Emera Incorporated on 10 July 2000.
Nova Scotia Joint Stock Registry number 3021211.
There is a conflict in the change of name information published in two different but both highly-reliable sources. The Joint Stock Registry reports that the change of name was legally effective on 10 July 2000, but the Emera Annual Report for 2000 states that the change of name was effective on 17 July 2000. This difference is minor, only seven days, and is of no consequence to us, many years later. It is mentioned here only to avoid the possibility that the reader of this history might form an impression that the author of this history was careless.
On 2 December 1998 shareholders approved a proposal
to reorganize Nova Scotia Power Inc. to create a holding company
structure. This reorganization allows the regulated utility business of
Nova Scotia Power (NSPI) to be held in a corporation separate from
other business activities. On 9 December 1998 the Supreme Court of
Nova Scotia ratified the new holding company structure. On
1 January 1999 all NSPI common shareholders exchanged their shares
for NS Power Holdings Inc. common shares on a one-for-one basis.
Source: NS Power Holdings Inc. Annual Report 1998
http://www.emera.com/images/annreport98.pdf
NS Power Holdings Inc. common shares were approved for listing
on the Toronto and Montreal stock exchanges and began trading on
6 January 1999. The company name was changed to Emera Inc. on
17 July 2000.
Source: Emera Inc. Annual Report 2000
http://www.emera.com/images/annreport00.pdf
In early October 2001, final regulatory approvals for the
merger between the Bangor Hydro Electric Company and Emera Inc. were
received. On October 10, 2001, Emera completed the acquisition of all
of the outstanding common stock of the Bangor Hydro Electric Company
for US$26.806 per share in cash.
Source: Bangor Hydro Electric Company Annual Report 2001 (SEC form 10-K)
http://biz.yahoo.com/e/020320/bgr.html
As of July 2002, Emera Inc., 1894 Barrington Street, Halifax, had the following subsidiary companies:
• Nova Scotia Power Inc. (wholly owned)
• Bangor Hydro-Electric Company (wholly owned)
• Emera Energy (wholly owned)
• Emera Fuels Inc. (wholly owned)
• Maritimes and Northeast Pipeline (12.5% interest)
• Sable Project (SOEP) (8.4% interest)
The SOEP infrastructure assets comprise a gas processing plant at
Goldboro, Nova Scotia; a natural gas liquids fractionation plant at
Point Tupper, Nova Scotia; a natural gas liquids pipeline connecting the
Goldboro and Point Tupper operations; offshore production platforms;
and sub-sea gathering pipelines.
Source: Emera's website http://www.emera.com/
Bangor Hydroservice area |
In 1917, electric power service in the town of Wolfville, supplied by the Acadia Electric Light Company in Wolfville was far from satisfactory. The Wolfville Board of Trade (whose secretary, incidentally, was George C. Nowlan, a federal cabinet minister forty years later) decided somebody had to do something about the electricity supply in Wolfville. It asked two of the sharpest young businessmen around town to investigate the Gaspereau River as a power source.
They were Charles H. Wright, a capable and popular building contractor, and Roy A. Jodrey, farmer, apple speculator, and fair-haired boy of the W.H. Chase organization. L.E. Shaw, a brick manufacturer who was also president of the Wolfville Board of Trade, wrote many years later that Jodrey and Wright "never came back to report. They found more than we had anticipated."
Wright and Jodrey found a waterfall, formed a company (Gaspereaux River Light, Heat & Power Company), built a dam (at Stivers Falls), installed a powerhouse, and built electric transmission lines out across the Annapolis Valley...
No one is precisely sure about the construction schedule of
the dam, powerhouse, and pulpworks that Wright and Jodrey built at
Stivers Falls, White Rock, Kings County, but two facts are known:
• Wright and Jodrey got provincial
approval for the dam on June 15, 1917. Charlie Wright had his
plans ready, and, that day, work began on construction of the dam.
• The hydroelectric generating plant
began to operate on February 25, 1920. By May 1920, it was
producing electric power for Wolfville, Greenwich, and Port Williams...
Source: Excerpted from pages 114, 118 and 119, The Story of R.A. Jodrey, Entrepreneur (book), by Harry Bruce, McClelland and Stewart, 1979
In 1926, the Gaspereaux River Light, Heat & Power Company was sold to the Avon River Power Company.
Today, in 2008, Charlie Wright's dam at Stivers Falls still stands as solid as ever, and still produces daily revenue for the current owner, Nova Scotia Power Inc. It was built originally to impound water to form the head pond for the Stivers Falls generating plant. The Stivers Falls plant was demolished in the late 1940s, and was replaced by the modern White Rock generating plant, completed in 1950. The head pond for the modern White Rock generating plant is the same body of water that originally was the Stivers Falls head pond. Charlie Wright's dam today impounds the water that flows from the dam site along the White Rock canal to supply water to drive the turbine in the White Rock generating plant.
On July 29, 1920, the Gaspereaux Valley EL Company applied to the Public Utilities Board for authority to issue 800 shares valued at ten dollars each, to get $8,000 to build six miles ten km of power line between the Stivers Falls powerhouse at White Rock and the village of Gaspereau.
Source: Excerpted from page 120, The Story of R.A. Jodrey, Entrepreneur (book), by Harry Bruce, McClelland and Stewart, 1979
In 1931, the Gaspereaux Valley EL Co. was sold to the Avon River Power Company.
NSL 1905 chapter 136 — Act to incorporate the Gold River Mines & Power Co. Ltd.
NSL 1906 chapter 168 — Amendment
The Gold River Mines & Power Co. was incorporated under 5 Edw. VII c. 136, passed by the Nova Scotia Legislature on 7 April 1905.
The Habitant Electric Light Company Limited was incorporated in 1921.
The Habitant EL Company never generated electric power, it bought its electricity wholesale from the Canning Water Commission's electric system.
On 21 August 1941, the Public Utilities Board gave official approval for the sale of Habitant Electric Light Company to the Avon River Power Company of Windsor, then a wholly-owned subsidiary of Nova Scotia Light & Power Company of Halifax. The sale price was $800.
Source: Public Utilities Board Annual Report, 1941, pages 82-88
See note 3
NSL 1913 chapter 141 — Act to authorize the Halifax Development Co. Ltd. to erect poles and wires
NSL 1913 chapter 142 —
NSL 1881 chapter 58 — Act to incorporate the Halifax Electric Light Co. Ltd.
NSL 1895 chapter 107 — Act to incorporate the Halifax Electric Tramway Co. Ltd.
NSL 1896 chapter 87 — Amendment
NSL 1897 chapter 92 — Act respecting amalgamation of Halifax Gas light Co. with People's Heat & Light Co.
NSL 1902 chapter 180 — Act to amend chapter 107 of 1895
NSL 1906 chapter 66 — Act respecting taxation by City of Halifax
NSL 1911 chapter 11 — Of Street Railway Companies
NSL 1912 chapter 209 —
NSL 1912 chapter 78 —
NSL 1913 chapter 194 —
"The first trolley car started out on February 13, 1896," according to a technical paper Halifax Electric Tramway Plant and Steam Engineering read on May 7, 1907, by Philip A. Freeman, Chief Engineer of the Halifax Electric Tram Company, before the Nova Scotia Society of Engineers. It is unclear whether this was a test run or the beginning of regular service, but it is certain that the electric street railway was able to operate at least one car on the track on this day, meaning that the electric generating plant was operational, and the track and overhead trolley wire were in place and able to perform their intended functions.
There are very few soft coal regions where so little use has been made of coal gas and coke as is the case in Nova Scotia, notwithstanding that Nova Scotian coals are particularly suitable for gas manufacture, and are "fat" coals, yielding a larger percentage of by-products than any Canadian coals. The gas works of the Halifax Electric Tramway Company in Halifax, and the Yarmouth Fuel Gas Company, are the only gas works in the Province of Nova Scotia.
Source:—
page 37 The Coal-Fields and Coal Industry of Eastern Canada, A General Survey and Description
by Francis W. Gray, Canada Department of Mines, 1917
NSL 1872 chapter 94 — Act to incorporate the Halifax Gas Consumers' Co.
NSL 1840 chapter 16 — Act to incorporate the Halifax Gas Light & Water Co.
NSL 1844 chapter 72 — Change name to Halifax Gas Light Co.
NSL 1857 chapter 71 —
NSL 1863 chapter 70 —
NSL 1864 chapter 64 —
NSL 1867 chapter 78 —
NSL 1874 chapter 85 —
NSL 1881 chapter 60 —
NSL 1887 chapter 123 —
NSL 1888 chapter 118 —
NSL 1889 chapter 122 —
NSL 1897 chapter 92 — Act respecting amalgamation with the Peoples' Heat & Light Co.
NSL 1840 chapter 16 — Act to incorporate the Halifax Gas Light & Water Co.
NSL 1841 chapter 19 — Amendment
NSL 1844 chapter 72 — Change name to Halifax Gas Light Co.
NSL 1911 chapter 113 — Act to incorporate Canadian Tungsten Mines Ltd.
NSL 1912 chapter 187 — Amendment
NSL 1912 chapter 188 — Amendment
NSL 1913 chapter 173 — Amendment
NSL 1914 chapter 182 — Amendment
NSL 1914 chapter 183 — Amendment
NSL 1915 chapter 94 — Amendment
NSL 1917 chapter 88 — Act to authorize the City of Halifax
to hold shares in the Halifax Power Co. Ltd. and to lend money thereto
NSL 1919 chapter 83 — Act to authorize and confirm agreement between City of Halifax and the Halifax Power Co. Ltd.
NSL 1919 chapter 84 — Amendment
In 1911 a company was incorporated under the name of The Canadian Tungsten Mines Limited, which name was afterwards changed more than once, and in 1913 it was called The Halifax Power Company Limited. The company proposed to develop a water power site at St. Margaret's Bay, by damming the waters of North East River and diverting them into the bed of Indian River, the latter being dammed at various places.
Source: Excerpted from the decision of the Nova Scotia Supreme Court dated 18 September 1913, on the appeal of Miller versus Halifax Power Co. Ltd. and Thomson versus Halifax Power Co. Ltd., as reported on pages 394-408 of the Eastern Law Reporter, volume XIII number 5, 24 December 1913, published by the Carswell Company, Toronto.
A project called the St. Margaret's Bay hydroelectric system, using the waters of these rivers, was built by the Nova Scotia Power Commission, an agency of the Nova Scotia Government. This project, which began regular operation in the autumn of 1922, consists of three hydroelectric plants, Mill Lake and Sandy Lake (these two generating plants are in the same building but utilize water from two separate rivers, the Mill Lake plant working under a head of 162 feet 49.4 m and the Sandy Lake plant working under a head of 125 feet 38.1 m), and Tidewater (taking the combined flow from both rivers and working under a head of 91 feet 27.7 m). The total installed capacity of these plants is 15,700 horsepower 11,700 kW. In 2008 it is owned and operated by Nova Scotia Power Inc., a subsidiary of Emera Inc.
In 1933, the PUB officially declared that the Halifax Power & Pulp Company "is a public utility within the scope of the Public Utilities Act".
About 1915-1918, the steam-powered electric generating plant of the Hantsport Fruit Basket Company sold about $2,500 worth of electricity a year, to the town of Hantsport (probably mostly, perhaps all, for street lighting). The company burned slack coal and wood waste from its wood-working mill.
Source: Excerpted from page 114, The Story of R.A. Jodrey, Entrepreneur (book), by Harry Bruce, McClelland and Stewart, 1979
The Hillaton EL&P Company never generated electric power, it bought its electricity wholesale from the Canning Water Commission's electric system.
On 21 August 1941, the Public Utilities Board gave official approval for the sale of Hillaton Electric Light & Power Company to the Avon River Power Company of Windsor, then a wholly-owned subsidiary of Nova Scotia Light & Power Company of Halifax. The sale price was $350. At the time of the sale, the Hillaton EL Company served 31 customers.
Source: Public Utilities Board Annual Report, 1941, pages 82-88
See note 3
NSL 1902 chapter 145 — Act to incorporate the Inverness Electric Light, Heat & Power Co. Ltd.
In November of 1897 the Joggins Coal and Railway Company which was operating a small electric generating plant at their mine offered to provide electricity to light the streets of Joggins. The only requirement was that the citizens provide the necessary poles, wire and lanterns (electric light fixtures). This was quite an achievement for a small town at this date as only the major centres had electricity. The citizens of Joggins were excited about this latest development in their fair town as travel out and about on the wooden sidewalks after dark would now be considerably safer.
Source:
History of Joggins by Dara Legere
http://www.geocities.com/dblegere/home.html
NSL 1891 chapter 149 — Act to incorporate the Kentville Electric Light & Power Co. Ltd.
NSL 1892 chapter 175 — Amendment
NSL 1902 chapter 187 — To amend chapter 149 of 1891
NSL 1850 chapter 25 — Act to incorporate the Kerosene Gas Light Co.
NSL 1851 chapter 8 — Amendment
On 27 September 1922, the Kingsport EL Co. received
approval to issue 30 shares of common stock of par value $100.00 each,
to raise $3000 for capital expenditures — the cost of construction of a
power line from Habitant to Kingsport and a distribution system in
Kingsport.
The Kingsport EL Company never generated electric power, it bought its electricity wholesale from the Habitant Electric Light Company.
On 21 August 1941, the Public Utilities Board gave official approval for the sale of the Kingsport Electric Light Company to the Avon River Power Company of Windsor, then a wholly-owned subsidiary of Nova Scotia Light & Power Company of Halifax. The sale price was $2,600.
Source: Public Utilities Board Annual Report, 1941, pages 82-88
See note 3
(Note: Louisburg is the correct spelling for this company name, not Louisbourg.)
Cape Breton CountyNSL 1900 chapter 132 — Act to incorporate the Louisburg Electric, Water & Power Co. Ltd.
In 1931, the Lower Horton Electric Co. was sold to the Avon River Power Company.
NSL 1889 chapter 133 — Act to incorporate the Lunenburg Gas Co. Ltd.
NSL 1897 chapter 124 — Amendment
NSL 1898 chapter 160 — Amendment
In spite of its name the Lunenburg Gas Company Limited sold electric power, not gas, at least in its later years.
NSL 1888 chapter 117 — Act to incorporate the Lunenburg Water, & Electric Light, Heating & Power Co. Ltd.
NSL 1890 chapter 179 — Amendment
NSL 1892 chapter 187 — Amendment
NSL 1894 chapter 104 — Amendment
NSL 1895 chapter 130 — Amendment
NSL 1889 chapter 134 — Act to incorporate the Maritime Fuel & Heating Gas Co. Ltd.
NSL 1890 chapter 196 — Amendment
NSL 1887 chapter 102 — An Act to incorporate the New Glasgow Electric Co. Ltd.
NSL 1889 chapter 129 — Amendment, as to construction of Street Railways
NSL 1890 chapter 163 — Amendment, as to Powers of Directors
NSL 1891 chapter 178 — Amendment, as to borrowing money
NSL 1892 chapter 180 — Enacting several amendments
NSL 1893 chapter 182 — Enacting several amendments
NSL 1894 chapter 95 — Enacting several amendments
NSL 1895 chapter 145 — Enacting several amendments
NSL 1895 chapter 146 — Amendment, powers of Directors to borrow money
NSL 1896 chapter 110 — Amendment, limiting time for construction
NSL 1898 chapter 172 — Amendment, time for construction and completion
NSL 1909 chapter 142 — Act to confirm contract between New Glasgow Electric Co. Ltd. and Egerton Tramway Co. Ltd.
NSL 1909 chapter 143 — Amendment and name changed
NSL 1910 chapter 163 — Amendment
NSL 1916 chapter 105 — Amendment
In 1925, the PUB wrote: Thomas G. Nichol of Mahone Bay ... owns and operates a hydroelectric development at Canada Hill (in Shelburne County). In April 1924 (there seems to be some confusion in these dates) this plant was sold to the Town of Lockeport.
NSL 1888 chapter 124 — An Act to incorporate the North Sydney Electric Light & Water Co. Ltd.
NSL 1882 chapter 80 — An Act to incorporate the North Sydney Gas & Electric Light Co. Ltd.
NSL 1888 chapter 149 — An Act to incorporate anew
NSL 1890 chapter 170 — An Act to incorporate the North Sydney Water & Electric Co. Ltd.
NSL 1873 chapter 24 — Act to authorize the construction of a Tramway from White Rock Mills, by S.P. Benjamin and others
NSL 1897 chapter 111 — Act to incorporate S.P. Benjamin Co. Ltd.
NSL 1899 chapter 135 — Act to incorporate the Nova Scotia Electric Light Co. Ltd.
NSL 1900 chapter 165 — Amendment, limiting service area to Kings
and Annapolis Counties, and respecting sale by S.P. Benjamin Co. Ltd.
NSL 1901 chapter 174 — Amendment
NSL 1902 chapter 171 — Amendment
NSL 1887 chapter 92 — Act to incorporate the Nova Scotia Gas & Electric Light, Fuel & Power Co. Ltd.
NSL 1894 chapter 86 — Act to incorporate the Nova Scotia General Electric Co. Ltd.
NSL 1910 chapter 160 — Act to incorporate the Nova Scotia Hydraulic Co. Ltd.
NSL 1911 chapter 146 — Amendment
Incorporated on 1 January 1914.
Nova Scotia Joint Stock Registry number 1001082.
NSL 1913 chapter 190 — Act to incorporate the Nova Scotia Natural Gas Co. Ltd.
NSL 1916 chapter 117 — Amendment
NSL 1889 chapter 135 — Act to incorporate the Nova Scotia Power Co. Ltd.
NSL 1890 chapter 193 — Amendment, authorize to purchase property of Halifax Street Railway Co.
NSL 1891 chapter 158 — Amendment
NSL 1892 chapter 184 — Amendment, as to claims upon the Halifax Street Railway Co.
Nova Scotia Power Incorporated (NSPI), a new
privately-owned electric utility company, began operating on 12 August
1992, the day it bought the the assets of Nova Scotia Power Corporation
(NSPC), which was wholly owned by the Government of Nova Scotia.
On 12 August 1992, Nova Scotia Power Incorporated (New NSP), a
new privately-owned electric utility company, officially bought the
assets of Nova Scotia Power Corporation (Old NSP). As the Halifax Chronicle-Herald
reported the next day, Chuck MacNeil, Nova Scotia's Minister of
Finance, "tightly clutching a $192,000,000 cheque, joined Premier Don
Cameron" and New NSP President Louis Comeau "to officially close the
deal to privatize the power utility ... The province's $192,000,000
cheque was the government's profit from the sale of $851,000,000 worth
of new NSP shares. The utility received a cheque for $557,000,000 ...
from RBC Dominion Securities, the lead underwriter" of the share sale
(RBC is a short form of 'Royal Bank of Canada').
See:
An Act to Permit the Corporate Reorganization of Nova Scotia Power Incorporated December 1998
http://www.canlii.org/ns/laws/sta/1998c.19/20041004/whole.html
Nova Scotia Power IncorporatedFuel Sources for Electric Power Generation for the 12 Months of the Calendar Year |
|||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1992 (MW·h) |
1993 (MW·h) |
1994 (MW·h) |
1995 (MW·h) |
1996 (MW·h) |
|
| Thermal, Coal Fired |
5,994,000 | 6,345,600 | 7,159,700 | 7,053,100 | 7,850,300 |
| Thermal, Oil Fired |
2,469,500 | 2,117,200 | 1,205,700 | 1,239,400 | 608,700 |
| Hydro | 875,000 | 877,600 | 1,012,000 | 883,200 | 1,111,600 |
| Purchased | 194,700 | 218,900 | 216,200 | 499,500 | 254,600 |
| Total Generated and Purchased |
9,533,200 | 9,559,300 | 9,593,600 | 9,675,200 | 9,825,200 |
| Less: Losses and Internal Use | 731,300 | 665,200 | 627,700 | 640,400 | 679,600 |
| Total Electrical Energy Sold | 8,801,900 | 8,894,100 | 8,965,900 | 9,034,800 | 9,145,600 |
|
Source: 1996 Annual Report, Nova Scotia Power Incorporated
[Note: The above figures, for 1 January 1992 to 12 August 1992, are those recorded by the Nova Scotia Power Corporation (NSPC), the former owner and operator of the electric power system which was sold to Nova Scotia Power Incorporated (NSPI) on 12 August 1992.] |
|||||
| 1992 | 1993 | 1994 | 1995 | 1996 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Residential | 365,672 | 371,270 | 375,553 | 380,055 | 384,856 |
| Commercial | 32,143 | 32,289 | 32,342 | 32,383 | 32,329 |
| Industrial | 1,533 | 1,537 | 1,581 | 1,633 | 1,686 |
| Other | 5,518 | 5,596 | 5,731 | 5,892 | 5,908 |
| Total | 404,866 | 410,692 | 415,207 | 419,963 | 424,779 |
On 2 December 1998 shareholders approved a proposal to reorganize Nova Scotia Power Inc. to create a holding company structure. This reorganization allows the regulated utility business of Nova Scotia Power (NSPI) to be held in a corporation separate from other business activities. On 9 December 1998 the Supreme Court of Nova Scotia ratified the new holding company structure. On1 January 1999 all NSPI common shareholders exchanged their shares for NS Power Holdings Inc. common shares on a one-for-one
basis.
Source: NS Power Holdings Inc. Annual Report 1998
http://www.emera.com/images/annreport98.pdf
NS Power Holdings Inc. common shares were approved for listing on the Toronto and Montreal stock exchanges and began trading on 6 January 1999. The company name was changed to Emera Inc. on 17 July 2000.
Source: Emera Inc. Annual Report 2000
http://www.emera.com/images/annreport00.pdf
Nova Scotia Power Inc.
Net Peak Load
Wed. 27 Dec 2006 1810 MW
Thu. 28 Dec 2006 1895 MW
Fri. 29 Dec 2006 2016 MW
Sat. 30 Dec 2006 1881 MW
Sun. 31 Dec 2006 1846 MW
Sun. 14 Jan 2007 1840 MW
Mon. 15 Jan 2007 1979 MW
Tue. 16 Jan 2007 1968 MW
Wed. 17 Jan 2007 2144 MW
Thu. 18 Jan 2007 2086 MW
Sat. 15 Dec 2007 2115 MW
Sun. 16 Dec 2007 2020 MW
Mon. 17 Dec 2007 2046 MW
Tue. 18 Dec 2007 2021 MW
Wed. 19 Dec 2007 2111 MW
Thu. 20 Dec 2007 2115 MW
Fri. 21 Dec 2007 2021 MW
Sat. 22 Dec 2007 1902 MW
Sun. 23 Dec 2007 1747 MW
Mon. 24 Dec 2007 1583 MW
Tue. 25 Dec 2007 1530 MW
Wed. 26 Dec 2007 1600 MW
"Net load" is the total of "net generated power" for
all generating plants within the system.
"Net generated power," for an individual generator or power plant,
is the gross generated power less "station service."
"Gross generated power" is the measured power output at the
terminals of the generator, either for an individual generator
or for several generators within one plant.
"Station service" is the electric power consumed by equipment
within the generating plant itself. For hydro plants,
station service is minimal: a few kilowatts to run the pump
to provide pressurized oil for the governor, a small air
compressor, and the plant lights. For coal-fired steam power
plants, station service consumes as much as eight percent of
the generated power, for power to drive conveyor belts, to
pulverize the coal, to pump large quantities of cooling water,
to drive the forced draft and induced draft fans, lighting,
and all the other equipment needed to operate the plant.
Note: The load on an electric power system is controlled by the
customers or consumers, not by the electric utility company.
NSL 1902 chapter 178 — Act relating to Electric Light by the Nova Scotia Steel & Coal Co. Ltd.
From 1919 to 1924, Nova Scotia Tramways & Power Co. was under the management of Stone & Webster Inc., Boston.
In 1924, Isaac Walton Killam, through the Royal Securities Corporation, bought control of Nova Scotia Tramways & Power Co.
In 1928, Nova Scotia Tramways & Power Company Limited changed its name to Nova Scotia Light & Power Company Limited.
Incorporated as 3021211 Nova Scotia Limited on 23 July 1998.
Name changed to NS Power Holdings Incorporated on 11 September 1998.
Name changed to Emera Incorporated on 10 July 2000.
Nova Scotia Joint Stock Registry number 3021211.
NS Power Holdings Incorporated (NSH), a holding company, was incorporated on 23 July 1998. (A holding company owns shares of other companies. That's all it does. A holding company does not own any physical assets and does not operate any business. NSH owns no generating plants, no transmission lines, and produces no electricity. NSH owns NSPI, and NSPI owns the generating plants and transmission lines, and produces the electricity.)
Effective 1 January 1999, the common shareholders of Nova Scotia Power Inc. (NSPI) exchanged all of their common shares for common shares of NS Power Holdings Inc. on a one-for-one basis.
Nova Scotia Power Inc., a wholly-owned subsidiary of Emera Inc., is the dominant electricity supplier in Nova Scotia. Nova Scotia Power has 440,000 residential, commercial and industrial customers, and assets totaling $2,800,000,000. NSP's operations are regulated by the Nova Scotia Utility and Review Board, and include approximately 97% of the generation, 99%of the transmission and 95%of the distribution of electric power throughout Nova Scotia.
The wholly-owned subsidiaries of NS Power Holdings, in January 2000, were:
Nova Scotia Power Inc.
Enercom Inc.
NSP Pipeline Inc.
NSP U.S. Holdings Inc.
Strait Energy Inc.
NS Power Services Inc., and
Stellarton Basin Coal Gas Inc. (SBCGI).
NSP Pipeline Inc. and NSP U.S. Holdings Inc. own a 12.5% equity
investment in Maritimes & Northeast Pipeline, which is regulated by
the National Energy Board (NEB) in Canada and the Federal Energy
Regulatory Commission (FERC) in the U.S. Enercom Inc. is an unregulated
subsidiary which has expanded NSH's energy product line to include
distribution of a full range of fuel oil products.
Sources:
The Halifax Chronicle-Herald, 18 and 23 February 2000
and SEDAR http://www.sedar.com/
NS Power Holdings Incorporated [RJSC ID#3021211] has its
registered office at 1894 Barrington Street, Barrington Tower,
Scotia Square, Halifax, Nova Scotia. The company's directors, as of
17 February 2000, were:
• David McD. Mann, Halifax, Nova Scotia; President and CEO
• Derek Oland, New River Beach, New Brunswick
• George A. Caines, Q.C., Halifax, Nova Scotia
• Purdy Crawford, Q.C., Toronto, Ontario
• R. Irene d`Entremont, Yarmouth, Nova Scotia
• James K. Gray, Calgary, Alberta
• Thomas R. Hall, Marble Mountain, Nova Scotia
• M. Edward MacNeil, Sydney River, Nova Scotia
• Dr. Elizabeth Parr-Johnston, Fredericton, New Brunswick
• Kenneth C. Rowe, Halifax, Nova Scotia
• Rosemary Scanlon, London, England
• Paul D. Sobey, New Glasgow, Nova Scotia
The company's recognized agent is:
Richard J. Smith, Secretary & General Counsel
Nova Scotia Power Incorporated [RJSC ID#1567820] has its
registered office at 1894 Barrington Street, Barrington Tower,
Scotia Square, Halifax, Nova Scotia. The company's directors, as of
17 February 2000, were:
• Paul D. Sobey, New Glasgow, Nova Scotia
• Thomas R. Hall, Marble Mountain, Nova Scotia
• M. Edward MacNeil, Sydney River, Nova Scotia
• Derek Oland, New River Beach, New Brunswick
• Elizabeth Parr-Johnston, Fredericton, New Brunswick
• Kenneth C. Rowe, Halifax, Nova Scotia
• Rosemary Scanlon, London, England
• George A. Caines, Halifax, Nova Scotia
• R. Irene d`Entremont, Yarmouth, Nova Scotia
• Purdy Crawford, Toronto, Ontario
• David McD. Mann, Halifax, Nova Scotia; President and CEO
• James K. Gray, Calgary, Alberta
The company's recognized agent is:
Richard J. Smith, Secretary & General Counsel
Enercom Communications Incorporated [RJSC ID#3028342]
(formerly Scotiacom Telecommunications) has its registered office at
1894 Barrington Street, Barrington Tower, Scotia Square, Halifax,
Nova Scotia. The company's directors, as of 17 February 2000,
were:
• Richard J. Smith, Halifax, Nova Scotia; Secretary
• David McD. Mann, Halifax, Nova Scotia; Chairman and CEO
• Jay Forbes, Halifax, Nova Scotia; Vice President
• Wayne J. Crawley, Nova Scotia; Vice President
The company's recognized agent is:
Richard J. Smith, Secretary
Quality Connections Communications Incorporated
[RJSC ID#2267629] has its registered office at
1894 Barrington Street, Barrington Tower, Scotia Square, Halifax,
Nova Scotia. The company's directors, as of 17 February 2000,
were:
• Richard J. Smith, Halifax, Nova Scotia; Secretary
• David McD. Mann, Halifax, Nova Scotia
• Jay Forbes, Halifax, Nova Scotia
• Wayne J. Crawley, Nova Scotia
The company's recognized agent is:
Richard J. Smith, Secretary
Enercom Mobile Communications [RJSC ID#3039357] has its
registered office at 1894 Barrington Street, Barrington Tower,
Scotia Square, Halifax, Nova Scotia. As of 17 February 2000,
the RJSC lists no directors.
The company's recognized agent is:
Richard J. Smith
Enovacom [RJSC ID#3039355] has its registered office at
1894 Barrington Street, Barrington Tower, Scotia Square, Halifax,
Nova Scotia. As of 17 February 2000, the RJSC lists no
directors.
The recognized agent of this Partnership/Business is:
Richard J. Smith
Stellarton Basin Coal Gas Incorporated [RJSC ID#2230823] has
its registered office at 1894 Barrington Street, Barrington Tower,
Scotia Square, Halifax, Nova Scotia. The company's sole director, as of
17 February 2000, was:
• Richard J. Smith, Halifax, Nova Scotia; President and Secretary
The company's recognized agent is:
Richard J. Smith
Nova Scotia Light and Power Company Limited [RJSC ID#1001082]
(previous name Nova Scotia Tramways and Power Company Limited) has its
registered office at 1723 Hollis Street, Halifax, Nova Scotia. The
company's directors, as of 17 February 2000, were:
• A.G. Manuel, Halifax, Nova Scotia; President
• C.H. Loveless, Halifax, Nova Scotia; Vice President Finance
• H.W.V. Matthews, Halifax, Nova Scotia; Treasurer
• James G. Spurr, Halifax, Nova Scotia; Secretary
• George Perrin, Halifax, Nova Scotia
• A.L. Bruce, Truro, Nova Scotia
• J.G. MacDonald, Sydney, Nova Scotia
• G.J. McCulloch, Windsor Junction, Nova Scotia
• Barbara Walker, Halifax, Nova Scotia
The company's recognized agent is:
James G. Spurr
Sources:
Nova Scotia Registry of Joint Stock Companies [RJSC]
http://www.gov.ns.ca/bacs/rjsc/
and SEDAR http://www.sedar.com/
NSL 1898 chapter 149 — Act to incorporate the C. O'Dell Electric Light Co. Ltd.
NSL 1898 chapter 170 — Amendment
NSL 1896 chapter 97 — Act to incorporate the Oxford Water & Power Supply Co. Ltd.
NSL 1899 chapter 92 — Act to authorize the Village of Oxford to
purchase the Water Works of the Oxford Water & Power Supply Co.
Ltd.
In a report dated 12 October 1934, the PUB wrote: Cyril L. Parks, "is the owner of a shingle mill at Noel, and in response to the requests of the people of the Village of Noel, he has entered upon the business of supplying electric energy to the public, and therefore has become a public utility..."
The Paradise Electric Co. was incorporated on 22 May 1920.
On 10 November 1922, the Paradise West EL Co. received approval to issue 45 shares of common stock of par value $100.00 each, to raise $4500 to pay the cost of construction of a transmission line and electrical distribution system.
NSL 1893 chapter 157 — Act to incorporate the Peoples' Heat & Light Co. Ltd.
NSL 1895 chapter 137 —
NSL 1896 chapter 102 —
NSL 1897 chapter 90 —
NSL 1897 chapter 91 —
NSL 1897 chapter 92 — Act respecting amalgamation of Halifax Gas Light Co. with the Peoples' Heat & Light Co.
NSL 1898 chapter 159 —
NSL 1899 chapter 162 —
NSL 1900 chapter 164 —
The Pereaux Electric Light & Power Company was incorporated in 1934. On 19 November 1934, the Pereaux EL&P Co. was authorized to issue 30 common shares at a par value of $100.00 each, to raise $3,000 to pay for construction of a transmission line and electrical distribution system.
— Source: PUB Annual Report 1934
As of 28 March 1935, the total capital expenditure was $4,181.62, "and it appears that this is a reasonable expenditure considering the amount of work done." On this date, the Pereaux EL&P Co. had fifteen customers connected and taking electric power, 13 domestic (residential) and two commercial customers; fourteen of these customers were shareholders in the company. The largest commercial customer was the British Canadian Fruit Association.
— Source: PUB Annual Report 1935, pages 46 and 47
On 13 May 1935, the Pereaux EL&P Co. got official approval for its schedule of rates:
|
Pereaux Electric Light & Power Company May 1935
on bills paid on or before the tenth day of the month in which they become payable. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Source: Public Utilities Board Annual Report 1935
On 21 August 1941, the Public Utilities Board gave official approval for the sale of the Pereaux Electric Light & Power Company to the Avon River Power Company of Windsor, then a wholly-owned subsidiary of Nova Scotia Light & Power Company of Halifax. The sale price was $3,250.
See note 3
— Source: PUB Annual Report 1941, pages 82-88
In May 2005, research in the PUB records in Halifax turned up this: Mr. Francis J. Hewett was President and Managing Director of the Pereaux EL&P Co. in 1934 and 1935 (beyond 1935 is unknown).
NSL 1846 chapter 41 — Act to incorporate the Pictou Gas Light Co.
NSL 1851 chapter 10 — Amendment
NSL 1885 chapter 110 — Act to incorporate the Pictou Gaslight Co. Ltd.
NSL 1892 chapter 162 — Act to incorporate the Port Hawkesbury Electric Co. Ltd.
Act to Incorporate PEL passed in 1924
NSL 1914 chapter 187 — Act conferring certain powers on the Sackville River Electric Co. Ltd.
On 25 February 1935, official approval was given by the PUB for the Sackville River Electric Co. to sell its entire property, assets and undertaking to the Nova Scotia Light & Power Co. Ltd.
NSL 1897 chapter 96 — Act to incorporate the St. Croix Paper Co. Ltd.
NSL 1899 chapter 169 — Amendment
NSL 1910 chapter 169 — Amendment
On 7 November 1922, the Sheffield Mills L&P Co. received approval from the PUB to issue 120 shares of common stock of par value $50.00 each, to raise $6000 for construction of a power distribution line. In 1931, the Sheffield Mills L&P Co. was sold to the Avon River Power Company.
NSL 1903 chapter 185 — Act to incorporate the Shelburne Electric Co. Ltd.
NSL 1900 chapter 151 — Act to incorporate the Shelburne Power Co. Ltd.
Approval issued by the PUB on 16 April 1934 to "Leonard Rodenizer doing business as the Sherbrooke Electric Company", engaged in the business of generating and distributing electric power to the public in the Village of Sherbrooke; Streetlighting Rate, operating from Twilight to Midnight, 60 watt lamps installed, maintained, and renewed by Sherbrooke Electric Co., $12.00 per lamp per year.
PUB reported that, as of 20 December 1909 the Standard Engineering Co. of Maccan in Cumberland County, supplied electricity to a "few houses" in Chignecto, Maccan, River Hebert, and Joggins.
Stone & Webster Management Association 1907
Stone & Webster Management Division 1917
Stone & Webster Incorporated 1929
Stone & Webster Service Corporation 1929
Stone & Webster Management Consultants Inc. 1968
Stone & Webster Wikipedia
Stone & Webster Robert Monks
Stone & Webster Time, July 1929
Stone & Webster The Boston Globe, March 2006
No adequate history of the electric power industry in Nova Scotia can be written without prominent mention of Stone & Webster. In the 1920s and 1930s, Stone & Webster had important financial and management associations with several Nova Scotia electric utility companies. For most of its existence the Cape Breton Electric Tramway & Power Co. was a direct subsidiary of the Stone & Webster electric utilities and railways empire.
From 1919 to 1924, Nova Scotia Tramways & Power Co. was under the management of Stone & Webster. (In 1928, Nova Scotia Tramways & Power Co. changed its name to Nova Scotia Light & Power Co.)
|
In 1887, Frank J. Sprague demonstrated the first electric streetcar in
Richmond, Virginia. His invention, known as electric traction, offered
a new, much cleaner — compared to the horse-drawn streetcar services
widely used until Sprague's new technology offered a reliable
alternative — and more efficient way to move people which, combined
with the safety elevator, would permit much denser urban development.
It also created one of the first commercially profitable uses for electric power, becoming commercially feasible before such later developments as electric lighting, industrial machinery, and domestic appliances.
Urban and interurban electric railways played a major part in defining early twentieth century transportation routes and growth patterns throughout North America, at a time when highways were primitive. Two interurban electric railways were built in Nova Scotia in the early 1900s — the Egerton Tramway Company, incorporated 27 March 1902, built an electric streetcar line in Pictou County, Trenton - New Glasgow - Stellarton - Westville; and the Cape Breton Electric Tramway & Power Company, incorporated 30 March 1900, built a high-speed electric interurban line between Sydney and Glace Bay. (There were serious plans made to build other electric railways in Nova Scotia, including a line between Halifax and Bedford along the west side of Bedford Basin, a line between Halifax and Lunenburg, and the Blomidon Railway Company Limited planned a line from Wolfville through Canning to Scots Bay, but financing problems caused delays which ultimately defeated these proposals.) At this time, streetcar services and most other utilities were privately financed and owned, although their performance was subject to charters or franchises granted by cities and other local governments. The rapid multiplication of uncoordinated streetcar and interurban lines in the late nineteenth century begged for consolidation. This was initially achieved by the giant Stone & Webster Management Company, founded in Boston by engineer-entrepreneurs Edward Sibley Webster and Charles Augustus Stone, the central figures in the prestigious Boston engineering firm of Stone & Webster, the most famous enterprise of its kind in North America. They attracted large amounts of capital for acquisition and/or development of urban utilities and transportation systems across the United States and Canada. Stone & Webster and its backers wielded control through an array of interlocking holding and operating companies. By 1910, the company was widely known as "The Electric Octopus". In the United States, federal anti-trust regulators pulled the plug on Stone & Webster's giant utility cartel in 1934. Charles Augustus Stone (1867-1941) met his lifelong friend and partner, Edwin Sibley Webster (1867-1950), while they were studying electrical engineering at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Upon graduation, they followed the advice of a professor and rather than set up shop together, Stone worked for welding and manufacturing companies while Webster took up with Kidder, Peabody, & Company, a financial services organization. Their parents provided seed money in 1889, and they formed a consulting firm, the Massachusetts Electrical Engineering Company, whose first client was a paper mill in Maine in need of a hydroelectric plant for its power. Public utilities seemed a logical niche for the firm, and they began managing them in 1895, financing them in 1902 through an in-house securities department, and constructing them throughout the firm's history. By 1912 the firm had 600 consultants housed in an 8-story building, yet Stone and Webster retained adjoining desks and jointly signed their letters. What we know today (1999) as Stone & Webster Consultants came into being on 30 September 1907 as Stone & Webster Management Association. In 1917 Consultants became the Management Division, and in mid-1929 changed names again to become Stone & Webster Service Corporation, a wholly owned subsidiary but a separate entity from Stone & Webster. Its primary responsibility remained management services for utility companies, but it expanded in areas of general advisory services for the operation and development of transportation, natural gas transmission, and manufacturing. It remained that way through October 1, 1968, when, to better reflect its evolving services to client companies, it became the Stone & Webster Management Consultants, Inc. (also called Stone & Webster Consultants). New York, May 9, 2000 — The New York Stock Exchange announced today that trading in the common stock of Stone & Webster Incorporated will be suspended immediately. Following suspension, application will be made to the Securities and Exchange Commission to delist the issue. The Exchange's action is being taken in view of the fact that the Company announced on Monday, May 8, 2000 that it signed a letter of intent to sell substantially all of its assets and that it intends to file a voluntary petition for reorganization under Chapter 11 of the U.S. Bankruptcy Code in connection with such sale... See: New York Times, 10 May 2000 Sources: http://www.stoneandwebster.com/stoneweb/history/main.html http://www.historylink.org/output.CFM?file_ID=2667 http://www.blancmange.net/tmh/articles/hogisle.html http://www.infoplease.com/ipa/A0772572.html http://www.iwon.com/home/careers/company_profile/0,15623,84,00.html http://www.eci-online.org/visitors/memdir/mem-ston.html http://www.nyse.com/press/NT0005E73A.html References: Stone & Webster websites http://www.swec.com/engineering/index.htm http://www.swec.com/engineering/power/index.htm http://www.stoneweb.com/whatsnew/index.htm http://www.stoneweb.com/management/index.htm http://www.stoneandwebster.com/stoneweb/index.html http://www.stoneandwebster.com/stoneweb/services/technology/regulate.html http://www.stoneandwebster.com/stoneweb/services/energy/des.html |
NSL 1901 chapter 137 — Act to incorporate the Suburban Development Co. Ltd.
NSL 1903 chapter 211 — Act to incorporate the Suburban Electric Co. Ltd.
NSL 1903 chapter 239 —
NSL 1872 chapter 95 — Act to incorporate the Sydney Gas Co.
NSL 1882 chapter 84 — Act to incorporate the Sydney Gas & Electric Light Co. Ltd.
NSL 1888 chapter 125 — Act to incorporate anew
Effective 26 March 1910: For electric power supplied by Sydney and Glace Bay Railway Co. to Gazette Publishing Company Limited, a "special power rate granted by reason of the fact that the Town of Glace Bay's municipal electric plant provides no day service, 12¢ per kilowatt hour".
(This power likely was 600 volts DC, taken directly from the overhead trolly wire. Direct current was ideal for running a printing press.)
Incorporated on 26 January 1911.
Nova Scotia Joint Stock Registry number 1000776.
Name changed 9 June 1931 to Eastern Light & Power Co. Ltd.
The Sydney Mines Electric Co. Ltd. reported that, during the year 1912, its operating revenue was $12,165 and operating expenses were $9,087, and it paid $300 in taxes.
Source: PUB Annual Report 1912-13
By Order In Council dated 9 June 1931, the name of the Sydney Mines Electric Co. Ltd. was changed to Eastern Light & Power Co. Ltd., with head office in Sydney.
NSL 1919 chapter 90 — Act to authorize the Town of Antigonish to guarantee to James W. Taylor, owner of Electric Plant, a credit to assist him, etc.
NSL 1887 chapter 108 — Act to incorporate the Truro Electric Co.
NSL 1889 chapter 130 — Act relating to the purchase of the Truro
Electric Co. by the Chambers Electric Light & Power