Ontario energy program to help people save money through home retrofits

The provincial government hopes to help people reduce their energy bills by improving the efficiency of their homes.

Energy Minister Glenn Thibeault was in Hamilton on Tuesday morning to launch the $100-million Affordability Fund.

The fund supports the installation of things like improved insulation, LED light bulbs and energy-efficient appliances.

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Thibeault says the program is aimed at those who need support to pay for such improvements, but who don’t qualify for low-income conservation programs.

As an example, he describes “the senior who has been living in the same home for 40 or 50 years, who has an okay pension but doesn’t have one that they’re living a life of luxury.”

Thibeault adds that the Liberal government is not expecting the announcement to result in a “ticker tape parade down the main street of Hamilton, but he calls it the “right thing to do.”

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The Affordability Fund is part of the Fair Hydro plan that was announced earlier this year, and which has reduced the average Ontario household electricity bill by 25 per cent from the peak in the summer of 2016.