New Procurement Process For Large Renewable Energy Projects

We recently highlighted some important changes by the Ontario Power Authority (the "OPA") to Ontario's renewable energy procurement program for microFIT, Small FIT, Large FIT and Contract Capacity Set-Asides. Perhaps the most significant of these changes originated in an Ontario Ministry of Energy directive, issued on June 12, 2013, which instructed the OPA to replace Large FIT Projects (over 500 kW) with a new competitive procurement process to be developed based on feedback from municipalities, aboriginal communities, industry associations, the general public and other stakeholders.

On December 2, 2013, the Ministry of Energy released Achieving Balance: Ontario's Long-Term Energy Plan ("LTEP"), a comprehensive strategy of energy power generation from now until 2025. Importantly, the LTEP provides guidance on the capacity and timing of new resources to be procured under the OPA's large renewables procurement ("LRP") process.  For example, the government plans to