B.C. Hydro's application to the B.C. Utilities Commission to hike electricity bills by more than 50 per cent over the next five years is more evidence that something is terribly wrong with the way the company and the B.C. Liberals are managing power generation in this province.

Hydro says it needs $6 billion to upgrade aging infrastructure, which is probably beyond debate. But casually jacking up the electricity bills of B.C. residents and businesses at rates well in excess of inflation is wrong, particularly when our economy has not fully recovered from the recession.

A large part of the problem at Hydro is the government insistence that it pursue costly private, run-of-river projects and other so-called "green" initiatives. A look in Hydro's 2010 annual report shows the folly of this approach.

It cost Hydro $7.19 to produce a megawatt hour of electricity with its large dams last year when power from independent power producers cost $63.85 -nine times as much.

While its conservation initiatives are reasonable, Hydro and its political meddlers in Victoria should quit pursuing expensive alternative energy sources such as wind, solar and further run-of-river, and expand production of the green energy we've used for decades -cheap power from large dams.

Hydro should revert to its traditional role, the reason it's always been the jewel of B.C. Crown corporations, by providing the lowest-cost power that will drive prosperity in B.C.