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Ontario announced a 25% surcharge on electricity exports to the United States on March 10, 2025, naming New York, Michigan and Minnesota. The Independent Electricity System Operator (IESO) implemented it as a $10-per-megawatt-hour charge, then suspended implementation the next day at Ontario’s request by setting the rate to $0/MWh. The reviewed official record does not establish that a positive-rate charge was later reinstated.
What Ontario announced—and when
Ontario announced the export surcharge in response to U.S. tariffs on Canadian goods. It was scheduled to take effect March 10, 2025, and applied to electricity exports destined for the United States. Ontario identified New York, Michigan and Minnesota as states that could be affected. Ontario’s announcement described the policy as a 25% charge.
The IESO, which operates Ontario’s electricity market, implemented the measure at $10 per megawatt-hour (MWh). The operator described that amount as approximately 25% of the average cost of electricity; it was a wholesale export charge, not a 25% increase applied to household bills. IESO market-rule information describes the tariff response charge.
Is Ontario still charging for electricity exports?
The IESO says Ontario asked it on March 11, 2025, to suspend implementation. The rate was changed to $0/MWh, so the announced $10/MWh charge was no longer being applied under that instruction. The IESO also recorded that Ontario retained the ability to reinstate a surcharge. The official sources reviewed here do not establish a later reinstatement, so it would be inaccurate to describe the positive-rate charge as currently active on this evidence. See the IESO’s suspension notice and market-rule update.
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Would it raise electricity bills by 25%?
The charge applied to wholesale electricity exports destined for the U.S. It was not a direct 25% surcharge on retail bills, and the official announcements reviewed do not show that household bills rose by that amount. A wholesale export charge and the price a household pays are different parts of the electricity market; the announcement alone does not establish a particular retail-bill effect.
Ontario estimated that 1.5 million homes and businesses in the named states could be affected, and that the measure could cost up to $400,000 per day while in place. Those figures were Ontario government estimates, not measured outcomes. The announcement does not quantify Ontario power’s share of each state’s electricity mix or establish that every customer in those states received electricity from Ontario.
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How exports could be affected
The IESO’s market rules covered exports destined for the United States even when electricity was routed through another Canadian jurisdiction. The charge was therefore not limited to a direct cross-border path. IESO tariff response charge information explains the routing scope.
Ontario Regulation 25/25, filed March 10, 2025, provided a regulatory basis for measures responding to U.S. tariffs, including a surcharge on electricity transmission to the United States. The regulation and market-rule changes established authority and implementation mechanics; they do not change the distinction between export charges and retail customer bills.
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What the measure says about the grid
Ontario’s electricity system is interconnected with New York, Michigan and Minnesota, as well as Quebec and Manitoba. The IESO describes interconnections as supporting system flexibility, reliability and cost effectiveness. The surcharge announcement by itself is not evidence of a reliability crisis or that any named state depended on Ontario for all, or even a quantified share, of its electricity. See the IESO’s imports and exports overview.
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