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ontario regulation 273/18

made under the

Ontario Energy Board Act, 1998

Made: April 18, 2018
Filed: April 20, 2018
Published on e-Laws: April 20, 2018
Printed in The Ontario Gazette: May 5, 2018

Amending O. Reg. 541/05

(NET METERING)

1. (1)  Section 1 of Ontario Regulation 541/05 is amended by adding the following definitions:

“eligible customer” means a customer of a distributor who meets the criteria set out in section 7.1;

 

 “eligible third party generator” means a generator of electricity who meets the criteria set out in section 7.1;

“participating customer” means a customer of a distributor described in section 11;

“participating distributor” means a distributor described in section 11;

“participating generator” means a generator of electricity described in section 11.

(2)  The definition of “eligible electricity” in section 1 of the Regulation is revoked and the following substituted:

“eligible electricity” means the electricity that meets the criteria,

(a) set out in section 7 that may be conveyed into a distributor’s distribution system by an eligible generator, or

(b) set out in section 7.1 that may be conveyed into a distributor’s distribution system by an eligible third party generator;

2. (1) Subsection 2 (1) of the Regulation is amended by striking out “sections 3 and 4” in the portion before clause (a) and substituting “sections 3, 4 and 6”.

(2) Section 2 of the Regulation is amended by adding the following subsection:

(2) Subject to sections 3, 4 and 6, at the request of an eligible customer and in the circumstances and manner described in this Regulation, a distributor,

(a) shall allow an eligible third party generator with whom the eligible customer has entered into an agreement mentioned in clause 7.1 (1) (a) to convey eligible electricity on behalf of the eligible customer into the distributor’s distribution system for a credit on the eligible customer’s electricity bill; and

(b) shall bill the eligible customer on a net metering basis.

(3) Subsection 2 (3) of the Regulation is revoked and the following substituted:

(3) For the purposes of this Regulation, billing on a net metering basis is calculated in accordance with section 8 by,

(a) in the case of billing an eligible generator in accordance with clause (1) (b), subtracting the value of the amount of eligible electricity conveyed into the distributor’s distribution system by the eligible generator from the value of the amount of electricity consumed from the system by the eligible generator; or

(b) in the case of billing an eligible customer in accordance with clause (2) (b), subtracting the value of the amount of eligible electricity conveyed into the distributor’s distribution system by the eligible third party generator on behalf of the eligible customer from the value of the amount of electricity consumed from the system by the eligible customer.

3. (1) Subsection 3 (1) of the Regulation is amended by striking out “Subsection 2 (1) does not apply” at the beginning and substituting “Subsections 2 (1) and (2) do not apply”.

(2) Subsection 3 (2) of the Regulation is amended by striking out “eligible generator” and substituting “eligible generator or eligible customer”.

4. Section 4 of the Regulation is amended by striking out “eligible generator” and substituting “eligible generator or eligible customer”.

5. Section 6 of the Regulation is revoked and the following substituted:

Subject to retail contract

6. A customer who has a contract with a retailer of electricity with respect to which a service transaction request, as defined in the Retail Settlement Code, has been implemented may enter into an agreement with a distributor to be billed on a net metering basis if,

(a) the customer is an eligible generator or eligible customer;

(b) the customer is billed under the bill-ready form of distributor-consolidated billing pursuant to the Retail Settlement Code; and

(c) the retailer confirms to the distributor that the retailer and the customer have an agreement that allows,

(i) if the customer is an eligible generator, the customer to convey eligible electricity into the distributor’s distribution system for the purpose of being billed on a net metering basis, or

(ii) if the customer is an eligible customer, an eligible third party generator to convey eligible electricity on behalf of the customer into the distributor’s distribution system for the purpose of being billed on a net metering basis.

6. (1) Subsection 7 (1) of the Regulation is amended by striking out “and” at the end of clause (d), by adding “and” at the end of clause (e) and by adding the following clause:

(f) if the generator is a party to an agreement related to the renewable energy generation facility other than a net metering agreement that was entered into before October 1, 2018, the generator confirms to the distributor that the information set out in subsection (4) has been disclosed to the generator.

(2) Section 7 of the Regulation is amended by adding the following subsections:

(4) The information referred to in clause (1) (f) is the following:

1. The name and contact information of any other parties to the agreement.

2. Whether the agreement is a lease, financing, hosting, licensing or other arrangement.

3. The term of the agreement.

4. The date on which the agreement begins to apply to the generator.

5. For the renewable energy generation facility, the rated maximum output capacity as stated on the nameplate of the machinery or equipment that is used to produce electricity.

6. Any insurance or warranty rights or obligations, including any obligation to pay a deductible, related to the renewable energy generation facility or related equipment, systems and technology and any limitations or exclusions in respect of coverage.

7. The terms of payment, including any terms related to deposits, interest or any other financial or legal obligations under the agreement that affect the terms of payment.

8. Any other costs for which the generator will be responsible, including costs related to administration and account billing, insurance or warranty rights, leasing, rental, installation, connection, ongoing operation, maintenance and removal of the renewable energy generation facility or related equipment, systems and technology.

9. Any right to terminate, suspend, amend, extend or renew the agreement.

10. Any penalties under the agreement and the circumstances in which the generator would be liable to pay the penalties.

11. Any right to transfer or assign the agreement.

12. Any authority to put a lien on the generator’s property and the circumstances that would give rise to such a right.

13. Any maintenance and operation obligations the generator has with respect to the renewable energy generation facility or related equipment, systems and technology.

14. An estimate of the annual energy production of the renewable energy generation facility measured in kilowatt hours.

15. An estimate of the annual electricity cost savings to the generator under the agreement.

(5) If confirmation that the information set out in subsection (4) has been disclosed to the generator is provided by the generator to a distributor in accordance with clause (1) (f), the information is deemed, for the purposes of this section, to have been disclosed.

7. The Regulation is amended by adding the following section:

Eligible customer and eligible third party generator

7.1 (1) A customer of a distributor is an eligible customer and a generator of electricity is an eligible third party generator if,

(a) the customer and the generator have entered into an agreement for the purchase by the customer of electricity that is generated solely from a renewable energy generation facility that is owned or operated by the generator;

(b) the generator generates the electricity primarily for the customer’s use;

(c) the generator conveys the electricity that is generated directly from the point of generation to another point for the eligible customer’s consumption, without reliance on the distributor’s distribution system;

(d) the generator conveys any electricity that is generated that is in excess of what is consumed by the customer into the distributor’s distribution system on behalf of the customer; and

(e) neither the customer nor the generator is a party to any contract or agreement other than a net metering agreement or an agreement mentioned in clause (a) that provides for the sale, in whole or in part, of the electricity that the generator conveys into the distributor’s distribution system.

(2) For the purposes of clause (1) (c), electricity is conveyed directly from the point of generation to another point for the eligible customer’s consumption regardless of whether it is stored by the generator in a storage device for any period of time.

(3) For the purposes of clause (1) (d), electricity conveyed into the distributor’s distribution system may include electricity that was stored by the generator or customer in a storage device for any period of time, even if some or all of the stored electricity was not generated by the generator.

8. (1) Subsection 8 (1) of the Regulation is amended by striking out “eligible generator” in the portion before paragraph 1 and substituting “eligible generator or eligible customer”.

(2) Subsection 8 (2) of the Regulation is amended by striking out “eligible generator’s” wherever it appears and substituting in each case “eligible generator’s or eligible customer’s”.

(3) Paragraph C of subsection 8 (2) of the Regulation is amended by striking out “eligible generator during the billing period” and substituting “eligible generator or eligible customer during the billing period”.

(4) Paragraph D of subsection 8 (2) of the Regulation is amended by striking out “by the eligible generator” and substituting “by the eligible generator or by the eligible third party generator on behalf of the eligible customer”.

(5) Subsection 8 (3) of the Regulation is amended by striking out “eligible generator’s” and substituting “eligible generator’s or eligible customer’s”.

(6) Subsection 8 (4) of the Regulation is amended by striking out “eligible generator generating eligible electricity or being billed on a net metering basis” at the end and substituting “eligible generator or eligible third party generator generating eligible electricity or to the eligible generator or eligible customer being billed on a net metering basis”.

(7) Subsection 8 (5) of the Regulation is amended by striking out “eligible generator’s” in the portion before paragraph 1 and substituting “eligible generator’s or eligible customer’s”.

(8) Paragraph 1 of subsection 8 (5) of the Regulation is amended by striking out “eligible generator” and substituting “eligible generator or eligible customer”.

(9) Paragraph 2 of subsection 8 (5) of the Regulation is amended by striking out “eligible generator” and substituting “eligible generator or eligible third party generator”.

(10) Subsection 8 (6) of the Regulation is revoked and the following substituted:

(6) If the eligible generator or eligible customer has a contract with a retailer of electricity with respect to which a service transaction request, as defined in the Retail Settlement Code, has been implemented, the distributor shall modify the calculation of C and D for the purposes of subsection (2) according to the following rules:

1. In any billing period when the portion of the bill covering competitive electricity services for the eligible generator or eligible customer constitutes a charge or is equal to $0, the amount of the charge or $0, as the case may be, shall be used as the charge for the commodity of electricity for the purpose of calculating C, and $0 shall be used as the charge for the commodity of electricity for the purpose of calculating D.

2. In any billing period when the portion of the bill covering competitive electricity services for the eligible generator or eligible customer constitutes a credit, the amount of the credit shall be used as the charge for the commodity of electricity for the purpose of calculating D, and $0 shall be used as the charge for the commodity of electricity for the purpose of calculating C.

3. The competitive electricity services for the purposes of paragraphs 1 and 2 shall be as calculated by the retailer in accordance with the agreement between the retailer and the eligible generator or eligible customer and transmitted to the distributor for inclusion in the eligible generator’s or eligible customer’s bill under the bill-ready form of distributor-consolidated billing pursuant to the Retail Settlement Code.

4. For the purposes of this section, the calculation of competitive electricity services shall not include any charges arising from the application of Ontario Regulation 429/04 (Adjustments under Section 25.33 of the Act) made under the Electricity Act, 1998.

(11) Subsection 8 (9) of the Regulation is amended by striking out “eligible generator’s meter” at the end and substituting “eligible generator’s or eligible customer’s meter”.

(12) Subsection 8 (10) of the Regulation is amended by striking out “eligible generator” wherever it appears and substituting in each case “eligible generator or eligible customer”.

(13) Clause 8 (10) (a) of the Regulation is amended by striking out “eligible generator’s meter” and substituting “eligible generator’s or eligible customer’s meter”.

(14) Subsection 8 (11) of the Regulation is amended by striking out “eligible generator” and substituting “eligible generator or eligible customer”.

(15) Subsection 8 (12) of the Regulation is amended by striking out “eligible generator’s account” in the portion before clause (a) and substituting “eligible generator’s or eligible customer’s account”.

(16) Clause 8 (12) (a) of the Regulation is amended by striking out “eligible generator” and substituting “eligible generator or eligible customer”.

(17) Subsection 8 (14) of the Regulation is revoked and the following substituted:

(14) In addition to any other amounts that may be billed to an eligible generator or eligible customer as specified in this section, a distributor may bill an eligible generator or eligible customer for incremental metering and other costs incurred in order to connect the eligible generator’s or eligible third party generator’s generation facilities to its distribution system in accordance with the Board’s Distribution System Code.

(18) Subsection 8 (15) of the Regulation is amended by striking out “eligible generator” and substituting “eligible generator or eligible customer”.

9. Subsection 9 (2) of the Regulation is revoked and the following substituted:

(2) A customer who is an eligible generator or eligible customer and who has cancelled a net metering agreement under subsection (1) may not, for 12 months after the cancellation, be billed on a net metering basis, except in the circumstances described in subsection 5 (3).

10. Section 10 of the Regulation is revoked and the following substituted:

Virtual Net Metering Demonstration Projects

Virtual net metering demonstration projects

10. A virtual net metering demonstration project is prescribed as a demonstration project for the purpose described in clause 88 (2.1) (b) of the Act if,

(a) the project relates to one or more renewable energy generation facilities owned or operated by the same participating generator that,

(i) are either connected directly to a participating distributor’s distribution system or connected indirectly to the distribution system on the participating customer’s side of a connection point to the distribution system,

(ii) are not connected to a transmission system, and

(iii) are not connected to any other electrical equipment at a voltage of more than 50 kilovolts;

(b) the project has been selected by the IESO to participate in an IESO initiative designed to select virtual net metering demonstration projects; and

(c) the participating generator and the IESO have entered into an agreement in respect of the project and neither party is in default under the agreement.

Virtual net metering agreement

11. (1) A generator of electricity is a participating generator, one or more distributors are participating distributors and one or more customers of a distributor are participating customers if the generator, distributors and customers have entered into an agreement for billing in accordance with a demonstration project mentioned in section 10 and the generator and all the customers are eligible to enter into the agreement under section 12.

(2) An agreement mentioned in subsection (1) shall,

(a) if only one participating customer is a party to the agreement, specify that all of the electricity from the project is allocated for credit to the participating customer; or

(b) if more than one participating customer is a party to the agreement, provide that all of the electricity from the project is allocated for credit to the participating customers and specify the amount of the electricity from the project that is allocated for a credit to each participating customer.

(3) An agreement mentioned in subsection (1) shall specify a mechanism for changing the allocation of credits under subsection (2) if the number of participating customers that are a party to the agreement changes.

(4) Billing on a virtual net metering basis is calculated in accordance with sections 8 and 14 by subtracting the value of the amount of the electricity that is allocated to the participating customer and conveyed into the participating distributor’s distribution system by the participating generator from the value of the amount of electricity consumed from the system by the participating customer.

(5) No amount other than the credit mentioned in subsection (2) shall be provided to a participating customer or any other person in respect of the electricity from the project.

(6) An agreement mentioned in subsection (1) shall specify the date on which it begins to apply to each participating customer.

(7) The term of an agreement mentioned in subsection (1) shall not extend beyond the day that is 20 years after the date the agreement first applies to any participating customer.

(8) The agreement may be amended from time to time, including to provide for the addition, substitution or removal of participating customers.

(9) An amendment under subsection (8) shall not extend the term of the agreement beyond 20 years after the date the agreement first applies to any participating customer.

Eligibility of customer and generator

12. (1) A generator of electricity and a customer of a distributor are eligible to enter into an agreement mentioned in section 11 if,

(a) the customer and the generator have entered into an agreement for the purchase by the customer of electricity that is generated solely from a renewable energy generation facility that is owned or operated by the generator;

(b) the generator,

(i) if the facility is connected directly to the distributor’s distribution system, conveys any electricity that is generated into the distributor’s distribution system, or

(ii) if the facility is connected indirectly to the distributor’s distribution system on the participating customer’s side of a connection point to the distribution system, conveys any electricity that is generated that is in excess of what is consumed by the customer into the distributor’s distribution system;

(c) the generator is not a party to any contract or agreement other than a virtual net metering agreement or an agreement mentioned in clause (a) that provides for the sale, in whole or in part, of the electricity that the generator conveys into the distributor’s distribution system; and

(d) the customer does not have a contract with a retailer of electricity with respect to which a service transaction request, as defined in the Retail Settlement Code, has been implemented at the time the customer enters into the agreement with the generator.

(2) For the purposes of clause (1) (b), electricity conveyed into the distributor’s distribution system may include electricity that was stored by the generator in a storage device for any period of time, even if some or all of the stored electricity was not generated by the generator.

Subject to distributor’s licence

13. The connection of a participating generator to a participating distributor’s distribution system is subject to any conditions in the participating distributor’s licence governing the connection of generation facilities to its distribution system.

Billing

14. A participating distributor shall calculate, for a billing period, the amount of the bill of a participating customer who is billed on a virtual net metering basis in the manner set out in section 8, subject to the following modifications:

1. A reference to an eligible customer shall be read as a reference to a participating customer.

2. A reference to an eligible third party generator shall be read as a reference to a participating generator.

3. A reference to a distributor shall be read as a reference to a participating distributor.

4. A reference to eligible electricity shall be read as a reference to electricity.

5. The reference to electricity conveyed by the eligible third party generator on behalf of the eligible customer in Paragraph D of subsection 8 (2) shall be read as a reference to electricity conveyed by the participating generator that is allocated to the participating customer.

Commencement

11. This Regulation comes into force on the later of October 1, 2018 and the day it is filed.