NB Power
New Brunswick's vertically integrated, provincially owned electric utility.
Last updated October 16, 2026
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Overview
NB Power is the principal electric utility in the Canadian province of New Brunswick. Legally known as New Brunswick Power Corporation and operating in French as Énergie NB, it is a Crown corporation owned by the provincial government. The utility is responsible for most of the province's electricity generation, transmission and distribution, and serves residential, commercial and industrial customers throughout New Brunswick. A small number of communities have their own municipal utilities, including Saint John, Edmundston and Perth-Andover. The modern utility developed from a fragmented electricity industry. During the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, private companies and municipal operators built small generating plants in Saint John, Fredericton, Moncton and other communities. By 1918, more than 20 companies were supplying electricity at materially different service levels and prices. The provincial legislature responded by creating the New Brunswick Electric Power Commission on April 24, 1920. Its early work included the Musquash hydroelectric project and a long-distance transmission line linking Saint John, Moncton and Sussex. The first Musquash dam failed during flooding in 1923, but the commission continued expanding the provincial system. During the postwar period, NB Power's predecessor added major hydroelectric assets, including Tobique, Beechwood and Mactaquac, while also developing coal- and oil-fired generation. Rapid growth in electricity demand during the 1960s and 1970s required a mixed generation fleet. Oil-price volatility after the 1973 energy crisis encouraged the province to pursue nuclear power. Point Lepreau Nuclear Generating Station, a CANDU facility west of Saint John, began operation in 1983 after substantial construction delays and cost escalation. It remains the only operating nuclear generating station in Canada outside Ontario. NB Power's generation portfolio has historically included hydroelectricity, nuclear power, coal, heavy oil, diesel, natural gas and wind. Its transmission and distribution networks connect generating facilities with customers and with neighbouring provinces and U.S. power markets. The utility also participates in regional power trading and uses imports and exports to balance supply and demand. The Saint John area has a particularly dense concentration of generation and industrial power demand, including the Coleson Cove, Point Lepreau and Bayside facilities. The company has periodically been the subject of debate over debt, electricity rates, market structure, generation investment and its relationship with the provincial government. A 2003 reorganization divided the organization into generation, nuclear, transmission, and distribution and customer-service entities while creating related finance and system-operator bodies. These entities were merged again on October 1, 2013, restoring NB Power as a single vertically integrated Crown corporation. A 2009 proposal to sell most of NB Power's assets to Hydro-Québec became one of the province's most contentious energy-policy disputes. Public opposition, concerns about rates and employment, and disagreements over asset valuation and risk led to a narrower revised proposal. That agreement also failed in March 2010. NB Power remains provincially owned and continues to operate as New Brunswick's principal electricity supplier. Its strategic challenges include maintaining reliability, managing legacy nuclear and fossil-fuel assets, controlling costs, integrating renewable generation and meeting evolving Canadian emissions and energy-policy requirements.
History
Electricity development in New Brunswick began in the 1880s, when private and municipal operators established small plants in Saint John, Fredericton, Moncton and other communities. Expansion was uneven, and by 1918 more than 20 companies were involved in electricity supply. Customers faced significant differences in service quality and pricing, strengthening the case for provincial coordination. The New Brunswick Electric Power Commission was established by the provincial legislature on April 24, 1920. Under its first president, C. W. Robinson, it began building the Musquash hydroelectric project west of Saint John and an approximately 142-kilometre transmission line to serve Saint John, Moncton and Sussex. The first dam was completed in 1922 but failed during the spring flood of 1923. The setback damaged public confidence but did not stop the province's electrification program. A larger Grand Falls facility was developed by International Paper and completed in 1930, while the commission added the coal-fired Grand Lake Generating Station in 1931 and expanded it later in the decade. Electricity demand rose sharply during the Second World War and the postwar period, producing supply shortages and rationing in the late 1940s. The commission expanded its hydroelectric system with Tobique and Beechwood stations, commissioned in 1953 and 1955. It acquired Grand Falls in 1959 and began construction of Mactaquac, the province's largest hydroelectric project, whose first units entered service in 1968. Hydroelectric construction alone could not match demand growth, which averaged roughly 12 percent annually between 1960 and 1975. The commission therefore added thermal capacity. Courtenay Bay near Saint John began operating in 1960 and received additional units in 1965 and 1966. Dalhousie Generating Station was commissioned in 1969 to serve northern New Brunswick. Supply contracts with New England utilities contributed to the decision to build Coleson Cove, a large oil-fired plant completed in 1977. The oil shocks of the 1970s made this strategy increasingly expensive and encouraged diversification. New Brunswick had discussed nuclear power since the late 1950s. Formal provincial and federal discussions intensified in the early 1970s, and the federal government offered financing support for a first nuclear plant. Premier Richard Hatfield announced the Point Lepreau decision in 1974. Construction was authorized for a CANDU facility at a site west of Saint John. Labour difficulties, design changes, inflation and construction problems pushed the cost well above the original estimate. The station entered service on February 1, 1983, as the first operating CANDU-6 reactor and remains New Brunswick's only nuclear generating station. During the late twentieth and early twenty-first centuries, NB Power continued to operate a mixed fleet and faced recurring questions about debt, rates, competition and corporate structure. The company adopted the NB Power name during the period of thermal and nuclear expansion. In 2003, legislation divided the organization into generation, nuclear, transmission, and distribution and customer-service divisions. The legislation also created the New Brunswick Electric Finance Corporation to manage related debt and the New Brunswick System Operator to administer market relationships. In 2009, the provincial government negotiated a proposed sale of most NB Power assets to Hydro-Québec. The plan generated intense opposition from political parties, unions, energy advocates and members of the public. A revised agreement in January 2010 narrowed the proposed transfer to hydroelectric and nuclear assets, but the transaction collapsed on March 24, 2010. The episode reinforced the political importance of public ownership, electricity rates and energy sovereignty in New Brunswick. On October 1, 2013, NB Power, the Electric Finance Corporation and the System Operator were merged again. This restored a single vertically integrated Crown corporation. The modern utility operates generation, transmission and distribution infrastructure, serves most New Brunswick electricity customers, trades power through regional connections and continues to adapt its fleet to reliability, cost, nuclear-safety, renewable-energy and emissions pressures.
- 2013
NB Power becomes a unified corporation again
[1]Related NB Power entities and the system operator were merged, restoring an integrated Crown utility.
- 2010
Proposed Hydro-Québec transaction ends
[1]The revised asset-sale agreement was abandoned after continuing political controversy and concerns about risks and costs.
- 2009
Hydro-Québec sale memorandum announced
[1]New Brunswick and Quebec announced an agreement in principle to transfer most NB Power assets to Hydro-Québec.
- 2003
Corporate reorganization
[1]Legislative changes divided NB Power into separate generation, nuclear, transmission, and distribution and customer-service divisions.
- 1983
Point Lepreau enters service
[1]Point Lepreau Nuclear Generating Station began commercial operation, adding 660 MW of nuclear capacity to the provincial system.
- 1977
Coleson Cove completed
[1]The large oil-fired Coleson Cove plant was completed near Saint John after a period of fast demand growth and regional supply contracting.
- 1968
Mactaquac begins generation
[1]The first units of Mactaquac Generating Station entered service, creating the province's largest hydroelectric facility.
- 1955
Beechwood Generating Station commissioned
[1]Beechwood became another major hydroelectric installation on the Saint John River system.
- 1953
Tobique Generating Station commissioned
[1]The utility expanded its Saint John River hydroelectric resources with the Tobique station.
- 1931
Grand Lake Generating Station commissioned
[1]A coal-fired generating station near Minto entered service to supplement the province's developing hydroelectric system.
Products and positioning
A provincially owned, vertically integrated utility providing reliable electricity service across New Brunswick while managing a diverse generation fleet and regional power-market relationships.
Electricity retail
Residential electricity service
Electricity supply, billing and related customer services for households across most of New Brunswick. Municipal utilities serve selected communities outside NB Power's direct retail territory.
Electricity retail
Commercial and industrial electricity service
Power service for businesses, manufacturers, resource companies and other large users. Industrial demand is particularly important around Saint John and other major economic centers.
Power generation · 1920
Electricity generation
Generation from hydroelectric, nuclear, fossil-fuel, combustion-turbine and wind resources. The diverse fleet supports reliability and allows the utility to manage seasonal demand and regional market conditions.
Electric grid infrastructure · 1920
Transmission and distribution
High-voltage transmission and local distribution networks move electricity from generating stations to customers and interconnections. These assets form the physical backbone of NB Power's vertically integrated model.
Nuclear generation · 1983
Point Lepreau Nuclear Generating Station
A CANDU-6 nuclear generating station west of Saint John. With a stated generation capacity of 660 MW, it is the only active nuclear generating station in Canada outside Ontario and a major component of New Brunswick's baseload supply.
Hydroelectric generation · 1968
Mactaquac Generating Station
A major hydroelectric facility on the Saint John River and the largest hydroelectric project in New Brunswick. Its first generating units entered service in 1968.
Thermal generation · 1977
Coleson Cove Generating Station
A large oil-fired generating station near Saint John. It was built during a period of rapidly increasing demand and expanded regional electricity-supply commitments.
Controversies
2010
Executive dispute over sale process
President David D. Hay resigned and said he had not been consulted about the proposed sale, asset valuations or related strategy. The episode became part of the wider controversy over the governance of NB Power.
2009
Proposed sale to Hydro-Québec
The proposed transfer of most NB Power assets to Hydro-Québec triggered intense public and political opposition. Critics raised concerns about provincial control, electricity rates, employment, asset valuation and the treatment of generation and transmission infrastructure. The revised transaction was ultimately abandoned in 2010.
Marketing campaigns
- 2008Healthy Workplace recognition
Canada
NB Power received a Healthy Workplace Award from Canada's National Quality Institute, becoming the first electric utility recognized with that award.
Outcome. The recognition supported the utility's employer and workplace positioning.
Brand decisions
2013
Reunify the NB Power groupStrategyBackground
The province concluded that the divided 2003 structure should be replaced by a more integrated operating model.
Action taken
NB Power, the New Brunswick Electric Finance Corporation and the New Brunswick System Operator were merged on October 1, 2013.
Aftermath
NB Power resumed operation as a single vertically integrated Crown corporation.
2009
Negotiate sale of most assets to Hydro-QuébecM&ABackground
New Brunswick governments had faced long-running concerns about NB Power's financial sustainability, rates, debt and future capital requirements.
Action taken
The province signed a memorandum of understanding that would have transferred most generation, transmission and distribution assets to a Hydro-Québec subsidiary, while excluding several fossil-fuel facilities.
Aftermath
After widespread opposition, the parties negotiated a narrower proposal covering hydroelectric and nuclear assets. That agreement failed in March 2010.
- Hydro-Québec — Hydro-Québec participated in the proposed transaction but later expressed concern about unanticipated risks and costs, contributing to the agreement's collapse.
2003
Separate NB Power into operating divisionsStrategyBackground
The provincial government sought to change the utility's corporate and electricity-market structure while retaining public ownership of key network functions.
Action taken
Legislative amendments organized NB Power into generation, nuclear, transmission, and distribution and customer-service divisions and created related financial and system-operator bodies.
Aftermath
The separated structure was later reversed when the entities were merged again in 2013.
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