Overview

Ontario public agencies must report their annual energy use and greenhouse gas emissions to the Ministry of Energy and Mines each year by July 1. This is set out in the energy reporting regulation for broader public sector (BPS) organizations.

Energy usage can represent one of the largest operating costs for public agencies. Energy reporting, benchmarking and conservation planning will help public agencies:

  • better manage their energy use and costs
  • identify best practices and energy-saving opportunities
  • find ways to reduce greenhouse gas emissions
  • evaluate results by comparing similar facilities across the province
  • provide a benchmark to set goals
  • measure improvement over time

Public agencies that need to report

More than 700 public agencies are required to submit a report, including:

  • municipalities
  • municipal service boards
  • universities
  • colleges
  • school boards
  • hospitals

What to provide in your report

To report your public agency’s energy use, you will need to provide:

  • Your property information. This will produce accurate energy use data.
  • Your usage data. You need to report usage data for all forms of energy consumed by properties in your public agency (for example, electricity, propane, natural gas, diesel, fuel oil) for the reporting year (January 1 to December 31).

We publish the information that public agencies submit on the Open Data Catalogue.

Deadlines

Public agencies need to report energy usage data every year by July 1.

Reporting schedule for 2024

While we continue to phase in the program, you must submit your 2022 and 2023 data in 2024.

Reporting schedule beginning in 2025

Starting in 2025, you must report your energy data for the previous calendar year. For example, in 2025 you will report your 2024 data.

How to report

  1. Log in or register for an account on the Portfolio Manager website.
  2. Enter your information and the data for all your properties.
  3. Submit your report on Portfolio Manager. Follow the instructions on the reporting page and save the confirmation email for your records.

Guides and resources

Read the Guide to Submitting Data Through Portfolio Manager for Ontario’s Broader Public Sector to learn how to enter and submit your data.

Read Submitting data through Portfolio Manager for Ontario’s broader public sector energy reporting initiative to learn how to enter your consumption data into Portfolio Manager.

Read Broader public sector energy reporting for help understanding the new regulation and the transition to using Portfolio Manager.

Municipal benchmarking programs

Some municipal and regional governments have energy and water reporting and benchmarking programs that build on the provincial program.

Starting in 2024, the City of Toronto requires owners of buildings in Toronto that are 50,000 square feet and larger to report their energy and water use to the city. There are plans to phase in smaller buildings in future years.

While we are working to reduce the administrative burden to these building owners, currently Toronto building owners are required to report their buildings’ energy and water use to both the Ministry of Energy and Mines and the City of Toronto by each program’s deadline, using Energy Star Portfolio Manager.

The City of Ottawa  and Durham Region have their own energy and water reporting programs. These programs are voluntary for owners of buildings in those jurisdictions. Voluntary participants in those municipalities can receive recognition and additional benefits from reporting their data.

We encourage municipalities to email us at BPSsupport@ontario.ca when establishing new energy and water reporting and benchmarking initiatives targeted to the BPS.

Conservation and demand management plan

Public agencies required to report their energy use must also develop five-year energy conservation and demand management plans. These plans must be publicly available on their websites and in hard copy at their head office.

The plans must include:

  • conservation goals and objectives
  • proposed conservation measures
  • cost and savings estimates
  • a description of renewable energy generation facilities, including the amount of energy generated annually

Agencies must update the plans every five years, beginning in 2019. The next update is required in 2029.

Contact

If you have a question,  please contact BPS Support at 1-844-274-0689 or BPSsupport@ontario.ca.