◊ Part of the ‘wind energy’ series of articles ◊
Electricity in Ontario is governed by laws passed by the legislature. These laws or ‘statutes‘ are also referred to as ‘Acts‘, such as the ‘Electricity Act‘. Regulations are the rules that set out the details and practical applications of the law.
Ontario is part of an interconnected grid with other provinces and states. As a condition of connection all jurisdictions must comply with a myriad of regulations established by international organizations the North American Electricity Reliability Corporation (NERC), and the Northeast Power Coordinating Council (NPCC); enforced by the Independent Electricity Operator (IESO).
Trickle-down requirements
Statues and regulations identify the authority responsible for the determination of the grid connection requirements. As a minimum, the grid owner sets the requirements for a generator connection.
Distribution connected generation is subject to the requirements set by the Local Distribution Company that will provide the grid connection. It will be one of the 60-plus distributors in Ontario that will have jurisdiction depending on who owns the infrastructure at the connection point. Each LDC will have a connection process that must be followed. The list of licensed distribution companies is available on the Ontario Energy Board (OEB) website.
Transmission-connected generation is more complex as it must meet the requirements of the transmission owner (Hydro One in Ontario) and are subject to assessment by the Independent Electricity System Operator (the IESO).
Processes and requirements are available through the appropriate authority’s websites. The details are far too complex to cover in a blog and are subject to change over time.
Indirect regulatory impact
An example of an indirect requirement (by NPCC) is where each jurisdiction (Ontario in this case) must have an adequate reserve margin of generation. The reserve margin must be sufficient to meet the electricity demand in the planning horizon and allow for operational contingencies that may otherwise result in blackouts. Due to its intermittent nature, wind energy may not be considered as reserve capacity. Additional generation such as natural gas will most likely be required.
It isn’t just local operating practice for wind energy backup that drives the installation of natural gas generation. It’s also the need for an adequate reserve margin. Having insight into the overlap between generation required to back up wind locally and generation capacity required for the reserve margin will change the economic perspective of wind energy.
In Ontario, it would be the IESO that knows the extent to which regulatory requirements drive the margin of generation.
These requirements do not apply to distribution-connected wind energy which makes up approximately 12 % of Ontario’s wind capacity in 2018.
Provincial-level – environmental
Additional regulatory requirements are covered on my ‘Environment and human health’ page.
Derek
Previous article… Energy market influences
Next article… Displaced fuel cost savings
