CEBC Statement on BC Hydro 2025 Integrated Resource Plan
November 12, 2025
Revisions Needed to Reflect Rapidly Growing Energy Demand & Create Certainty for Future Calls for Power
The Clean Energy Association of British Columbia (CEBC) is pleased that BC Hydro filed its 2025 Integrated Resource Plan (IRP) on October 31, following direction from the British Columbia Utilities Commission (BCUC) to undertake more frequent long-term planning in response to economy-wide electrification, dynamic climate policy, and rapidly growing industrial energy demand. The IRP is a living document that should recognize the full scale of potential demand growth, lay out pathways to meet B.C.’s climate and economic goals, and send clear signals to First Nations and developers that are planning to partner and invest in future calls for power. The 2025 IRP falls short in these areas, with demand scenarios far lower than those developed by CEBC and Power Advisory through our Mock IRP.
“We agree with Premier Eby that B.C. can ‘be the economic engine of Canada’s new economy, and that engine will be powered by abundant clean electricity.’ To ensure we achieve this objective and bring billions in new clean investment into our Province, including unprecedented levels of local Indigenous ownership, we must plan for success,” said Executive Director Kwatuuma Cole Sayers. “The 2025 IRP does not capture the true scale of B.C.’s energy demand over the next two decades and does not provide a clear path to acquire the energy needed by our growing communities and industries. CEBC will continue to work with our members through the upcoming BCUC proceeding to contribute expert evidence and arguments that will improve the IRP and help ensure alignment with the Province’s objectives of advancing sustainable growth, affordability, and climate action.”
Across sectors, from mining and manufacturing to housing and data infrastructure, electricity demand is accelerating faster than the IRP anticipates. The plan’s acknowledgment that new supply will be required is a step in the right direction, but it underestimates how quickly that demand is arriving and how much power will be needed to meet the Province’s electrification and industrial goals. The 2025 IRP follows the trend of the 2021 IRP, which laid out highly conservative demand forecasts and did not plan for new energy acquisitions in the 2020s. The implications of this quickly became apparent, hindering new grid interconnections and progress on climate targets due to a shortfall in electricity supply. The 2024 and 2025 Calls for Power were designed and implemented promptly in response and will bring 10 TWh of much-needed supply online as we move into the 2030s. B.C. must ensure our next long-term energy plan does not make the same mistake, but rather is designed to assess the full scale of demand growth and clearly signal how future calls for power will meet that demand.
Although CEBC sees opportunities for improvements through the upcoming BCUC proceeding, we also applaud several positive aspects of the 2025 IRP, including:
- Commitment to complete the 2025 Call for Power (i.e., 5 TWh of new renewable resources).
- Preparations to deploy 400 MW of utility-scale storage.
- Prioritization of transmission build out and upgrades to facilitate sustainable growth and new generation (e.g., North Coast Transmission Line, capacity to Vancouver Island, capacity from the Interior to Lower Mainland).
- Potential acquisition of capacity resources following the Capacity RFEOI.
CEBC members, both First Nations and industry, remain committed to building the responsible, affordable, and clean energy projects needed to service unprecedented electricity demand. B.C. finds itself at an inflection point. We have an opportunity to collaboratively plan for the future we want – an equitable future with growing communities and industries powered by clean energy. We cannot realize this potential without a clear plan that aligns with the objectives of the Province. CEBC believes the IRP must become that clear plan, securing the certainty needed to build a competitive, clean energy future for all British Columbians.
