Alberta Energy Market Report · Issue #7
Alberta Energy Market Report - Week of October 12, 2026
Published Tuesday, October 20, 2026 · Data through Sunday, October 18, 2026 · 4 min read
A short weekly data post: where Alberta's wholesale electricity market sat last week, what the regulated default rate is, and what the energy portion of a typical household month costs on the Rate of Last Resort versus Bright Fire's 1-year fixed rate. Same structure every week; only the numbers change. Every issue is archived with a permanent link in the Alberta Energy Market Report archive.
In Plain English
Wholesale power prices spiked on Tuesday evening last week, then stayed low from Wednesday to Saturday, with many hours at zero.
- Default rate (if you never signed up with a retailer, you are likely on it): about 12¢/kWh (12.01¢ to 12.06¢ depending on your area), set until December 31, 2026. Last week's prices did not change it.
- Fixed plan: your price holds until your term ends. Ours is 8.29¢/kWh for 12 months, for people who want the same price every month.
- Variable plan: September worked out to 3.79¢/kWh (market 2.94¢ + our 0.85¢). So far in October the market has averaged 4.74¢ (October 1 to 18), and last week's prices are part of that average. It suits people who are fine with a price that changes month to month.
- A typical 600 kWh month, energy charge only: $72.06 on the default rate (at 12.01¢), $49.74 on our 1-year fixed, $22.74 on our variable plan at September's price. Delivery, GST and admin fees are extra (ours is $9.99/month; default-rate providers charge their own).
1. The Market This Week
AESO 30-day average pool price
3.84¢/kWh
$38.36/MWh · 30 days ending Sun Oct 18 (prior week's reading: 3.99¢)
Last week's daily range
0.68¢ to 12.39¢
Low Wed Oct 14, high Tue Oct 13 · week average 3.45¢ (prior week 6.01¢)
Regulated default (Rate of Last Resort)
12.01 to 12.06¢/kWh
Set by zone until December 31, 2026 (Utilities Consumer Advocate)
Bright Fire 1-year fixed
8.29¢/kWh
Current rate on our rates page · $9.99/month administration fee applies
The market this week: AESO's 30-day average pool price sits near 3.84 cents/kWh. Daily averages last week ranged from about 0.68 cents (Wednesday October 14) to 12.39 cents (Tuesday October 13), and the week as a whole averaged 3.45 cents against 6.01 cents the week before. October to date (October 1 to 18) averages 4.74 cents/kWh; September's full-month average was 2.94 cents/kWh.
| Day | Daily average | Lowest hour | Highest hour | Peak demand (MW) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mon 10/12 | 4.78¢ | 1.11¢ | 10.50¢ | 10,893 |
| Tue 10/13 | 12.39¢ | 1.22¢ | 80.53¢ | 10,911 |
| Wed 10/14 | 0.68¢ | 0.00¢ | 2.03¢ | 10,965 |
| Thu 10/15 | 2.17¢ | 0.00¢ | 11.78¢ | 11,088 |
| Fri 10/16 | 0.95¢ | 0.00¢ | 2.67¢ | 11,006 |
| Sat 10/17 | 0.87¢ | 0.00¢ | 4.70¢ | 10,688 |
| Sun 10/18 | 2.34¢ | 1.34¢ | 5.95¢ | 10,851 |
AESO hourly pool price in cents/kWh ($/MWh divided by 10), simple average of the 24 hours in each day. Peak demand = highest hourly Alberta Internal Load. Source: AESO Pool Price Report (ets.aeso.ca), retrieved October 19, 2026.
The regulated default (Rate of Last Resort): 12.01 cents/kWh in EPCOR Energy Alberta / FortisAlberta areas, 12.02 cents in ATCO Electric areas and 12.06 cents in Calgary, set until December 31, 2026. Source: Utilities Consumer Advocate, default rates table.
2. Alberta Bill Index (energy portion only, 600 kWh)
The energy-only portion of a typical household month (600 kWh) priced at the Rate of Last Resort in each utility zone and at Bright Fire's current 1-year fixed rate of 8.29 cents/kWh.
| Utility zone | RoLR | 600 kWh on the RoLR | 600 kWh on Bright Fire 1-year fixed | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| EPCOR Energy Alberta / FortisAlberta areas | 12.01¢ | $72.06 | $49.74 | $22.32 |
| ATCO Electric areas | 12.02¢ | $72.12 | $49.74 | $22.38 |
| Calgary (ENMAX Power wires area) | 12.06¢ | $72.36 | $49.74 | $22.62 |
Want this worked out for your own bill? The free Bill Check shows which part of your Alberta power bill you can change. If you never signed up with a retailer, you are likely on the default rate.
What the index does and does not include
Energy charge only: 600 kWh multiplied by the rate. Delivery and transmission charges are set by your local wires company and are the same on every retailer, so they are not included. Administration fees (Bright Fire's is $9.99/month), rate riders, other retailer fees and GST are also not included, so these are not full bill totals. Variable plans are not in this table: a variable rate moves with the monthly market price, so the table compares fixed prices only. The plain-English summary at the top shows our variable plan at last month's price. The pool price in section 1 is reported separately as market data only. Your own usage will differ from 600 kWh.
3. What Moved This Week
- Tuesday evening carried the week. Seven hours settled at or above 10 cents/kWh ($100/MWh), compared with nineteen the week before. Five of them came on Tuesday October 13 (the 7 a.m. hour and the 6 to 9 p.m. hours); the other two were Monday October 12 (8 a.m. hour) and Thursday October 15 (6 p.m. hour). The highest single hour was 80.53 cents/kWh ($805.28/MWh) in Tuesday's 8 p.m. hour, and Tuesday averaged 12.39 cents/kWh, the week's highest day.
- The weekly and 30-day averages both eased. The weekly average was 3.45 cents/kWh, down from 6.01 cents the week before. The rolling 30-day average was 3.84 cents/kWh, down from 3.99 cents a week earlier. Daily averages ran from 0.68 cents/kWh (Wednesday October 14) to 12.39 cents/kWh (Tuesday October 13); Wednesday, Friday and Saturday each averaged under 1 cent/kWh. Twenty-six hours settled at 0 cents/kWh ($0.00/MWh), compared with two the week before, all between Wednesday October 14 and Saturday October 17: most overnight or in the evening, plus two Wednesday afternoon hours and five Saturday morning and midday hours.
- Demand edged up. Alberta Internal Load peaked at 11,088 MW on Thursday October 15 in the 8 p.m. hour, compared with a peak of 11,054 MW the week before. Average hourly demand was about 1% higher than the prior week (10,398 MW vs 10,296 MW).
All three points are read directly from the AESO Pool Price Report (hourly price and Alberta Internal Load). This report does not forecast prices and does not explain individual price hours; AESO publishes its own market commentary.
4. Definitions, Sources and Notes
- Pool price: the hourly wholesale price of electricity in Alberta, set by the Alberta Electric System Operator (AESO), in $/MWh. Divide by 10 for cents/kWh. It is market data, not a retail rate.
- 30-day average: AESO's 30-day rolling average pool price at the last hour of Sunday, October 18, 2026 ($38.36/MWh). It equals the simple average of the 720 hourly prices from September 19 to October 18, 2026.
- Daily average and weekly average: simple averages of the 24 and 168 hourly pool prices for the day and the Monday-to-Sunday week.
- Rate of Last Resort (RoLR): Alberta's regulated default electricity rate for customers who have not chosen a competitive retailer (formerly the Regulated Rate Option). Set per zone until December 31, 2026.
- Alberta Bill Index: 600 kWh multiplied by the RoLR for each zone, and by Bright Fire's current 1-year fixed rate. Energy charge only; see the note above.
- Sources: AESO Pool Price Report (hourly pool price, 30-day average and Alberta Internal Load; retrieved October 19, 2026); Utilities Consumer Advocate default rates (RoLR by zone, retrieved October 19, 2026); Bright Fire rates page (1-year fixed 8.29 cents/kWh as of October 19, 2026).
- Machine-readable copy: every number in this issue is also published as JSON. Past issues: report archive.
- Past market prices do not predict future ones. Nothing in this report is a forecast or a guarantee of what any household will pay. Bright Fire Energy is a trade name of Sponsor Energy Inc. Sponsor Energy is a licensed retailer of electricity (Licence #343969) and natural gas (Licence #343970) in the Province of Alberta. Compare any plan, including ours, on the Utilities Consumer Advocate's Cost Comparison Tool. If you choose Bright Fire, you can sign up online in as little as 4 minutes.