Nova Scotia Power hasn’t paid some contractors in months

Multiple contractors that have done recent jobs for Nova Scotia Power haven’t been paid in months — some with outstanding bills in the hundreds of thousands, CBC has learned.

“We’re being told it was the data breach,” said Tim Houtsma, CEO of Marid Industries. 

Marid is owed in the range of $60,000 to $70,000. 

 “If we had a big piece of work with them, this would be a different conversation,” said Houtsma. “But we just happened to not have done much for them lately.

“It’s important that they’re held accountable and that they pay their contractors on time because we all pay our power bills on time.”

Other contractors who did not want to speak publicly told CBC they haven’t been paid by Nova Scotia Power since the spring. Some disclosed they are owed hundreds of thousands of dollars.

The utility announced publicly on April 28 that it was dealing with a cybersecurity incident it discovered on April 25. About 280,000 customers were affected by the attack — about half of the utility’s total customers.

In an email, the utility confirmed the breach has also affected payments to companies doing work for them.

“We are extremely sorry for the delays in payments to our contractors and suppliers,” said Jacqueline Foster, senior communications adviser for Nova Scotia Power. 

“Progress is being made, and invoices are being paid but we know it has been slow and causing real issues for our partners.

“We value our relationships with all our contractors and suppliers and are working to ensure they’re paid as quickly as possible while we work to return to normal operations.”   

The utility said IT and finance teams have been “working around the clock” to restore systems following the impacts of the cyber incident. Nova Scotia Power said it expects all invoices will be paid before the end of the year, and it will be able to resume normal timelines for payments.

Foster said if a contractor has questions about the status of their invoices, they can reach out to their regular contact at Nova Scotia Power or email [email protected].

Houtsma said the money owed to Marid isn’t causing him huge alarm. However, he sympathizes with smaller companies that are owed more.

“They’re going to get their money, but are they going to get their money before all the other things need to get paid and, and stuff like that? That’s a potential business-ending situation,” said Houtsma.

He points to a slow-burning piece of legislation that hasn’t become real in Nova Scotia yet, but could potentially help in situations like this one.

Under the McNeil government in 2019, an amendment of the Builders’ Lien Act included the addition of prompt payment. It eventually reached the public engagement phase in 2023. 

“The quickest way I can explain prompt payment, it sets out rights and responsibilities for each party to a construction contract from owner down to supplier,” said Duncan Williams, president of the Construction Association of Nova Scotia.

“When you issue an invoice for payment, the expectation is that it starts a clock and you are then to respond to that invoice.”

Williams said delays on the regulations can be blamed on the construction industry. He hopes it will be finalized in the legislature next spring. 

He admits it’s long overdue. 

“We were seeing payment terms of 60, 90, 120 days. So if you’re a trade contractor as an example, or general contractor, and you have bills to pay on Friday, you have a staff to pay.… It’s kind of hard to do that if you haven’t received payments,” he said.

“We typically see 35 companies a year on average that will go out of business largely because of non-payment.”

The goal is to bring Nova Scotia standards in line with other provinces, including Saskatchewan.

Williams was not aware of Nova Scotia Power’s payment issues until he was contacted by CBC.

“Whether it’s government, private or a wholly owned corporation or publicly traded organization, it doesn’t matter,” he said.

“If you’re buying construction, you’re going into it with a good-faith mentality and your contractors therefore will provide you with the best possible services. But you have to pay your bills.”

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