Power factor is a measure of how effectively your equipment converts electric current from BC Hydro's system to useful power output, such as heat, light or mechanical motion. Low power factor costs you money. The ratio of your usable power consumption to your reactive power consumption determines your power factor. Some electrical equipment, such as motors and transformers, require both types of power.
Power factor gets smaller as reactive power increases in comparison to usable power.
The train analogy diagram helps explain how it works. The surcharge chart shows how your charges are calculated. Low power factor is usually caused by devices, such as motors and transformers, which use a magnetic field to function. The ratio of your kWh consumption to your kVarh consumption determines your power factor each month. There are corrective devices to solve power factor problems.