On May 30, the provincial government ended months of speculation about when the next window would open for large FIT projects with the announcement that it is completely redesigning the procurement process for large renewable projects. It will not be a continuous open call for applications in the future, but a competitive procurement process.
Although the specifics are still under development, the direction the government intends to take includes these major elements:
• Procurement of larger renewable energy projects (over 500 kW) through a competitive process once Ontario’s review of the Long-Term Energy Plan is complete.
• Additional processes and responsibilities for proponents with respect to community consultation and municipal engagement under the competitive process.
• Working with municipalities to determine a property tax rate increase for wind turbine towers.
A government statement issued May 30 said, “The new process will replace the existing large project stream of the Feed-In Tariff (FIT) program and better meet the needs of communities. It will require energy planners and developers to work directly with municipalities to identify appropriate locations and site requirements for any future large renewable energy project.”
There will also be new incentives for municipalities to encourage their participation in Small FIT projects (over 10 kW to 500 kW). The government also announced annual procurement targets of 150 MW for Small FIT and 50 MW for microFIT up to 2018 – total of 900 MW of new capacity.
IPPSO FACTO will provide a more complete report in the next issue.