Toronto: In the preparation for what is likely to be a major hearing at the Ontario Energy Board, APPrO and others have asked the Ontario Power Authority for a more complete explanation of current transmission development plans. The OPA released outlines of its Integrated Power System Plan in May, and invited comment from stakeholders in the following weeks. APPrO submitted its comments on June 17.
In its filing, APPrO encouraged the OPA to “provide a comprehensive assessment of current projections of transmission availabilities and development plans in the IPSP. There currently are a number of transmission related initiatives involving different stakeholders that will impact the successful implementation of the plan and a number of supply initiatives. The status and results of these initiatives should be brought into a single, up-to-date publication, and APPrO believes that the IPSP is an appropriate context in which to do this.”
It also recommended the development of a new component for the IPSP – a “resource integration plan.” This plan would seek to proactively balance the deployment of resources to meet efficiency, reliability and operability objectives through a variety of strategies, APPrO said. “The co-ordinated use of contractual, operational and policy measures, with appropriate financial protection for existing investments, can produce net benefits for the system in such a context. An integration plan would result in increasingly coordinated action among the agencies to proactively manage SBG and other risks. Such a plan, as a component of the IPSP, would guide the OPA and others in a range of practical choices that will need to be made in the execution of the IPSP.”
APPrO said that “the OPA’s recent procurement experience has demonstrated that Ontario can rely on a strong supply of generation coming forward when the appropriate conditions are in place. Producers of clean and renewable electricity will rise to the challenge of providing power to meet Ontario’s needs through a diversified supply mix that satisfies government policy objectives.”
It went on to observe that “the OPA anticipates procuring more than 3,000 MW of Other Renewables (i.e., wind, solar and biomass) and approximately 950 MW of gas-based supply on top of resources that it is committed to contract by 2018. Some additional clarity on the anticipated procurement mechanisms in these areas would improve the industry’s ability to respond.”
“One of the central challenges is ensuring that the necessary transmission capacity is in place to enable the development of clean and renewable resources. APPrO believes that a transparent transmission planning process is required to facilitate that development. The OPA should endeavour to provide coordination for the collaborative work between transmitters, distributors and generators necessary for the swift integration of supply resources to the electricity network.
Noting that the procurement plan, which had been a major feature of the previous IPSP, is missing from the current plan, APPrO said it “believes that a stable procurement environment with established contractual terms is necessary for the successful deployment of additional clean and renewable resources. APPrO therefore recommends that a long term procurement plan be put into place as part of the IPSP, and that the two-year review of the FIT Program be conducted promptly and the results made available as soon as practical.”
For a copy of the full submission, please contact APPrO or the OPA.