The concept of energy aggregation is no stranger to anyone researching corporate renewable energy, but it can be somewhat complex if you’ve never heard about it before.

That’s why we created this energy aggregation guide, so you can have all of the information you require in one easily accessible place. Below, we’ll cover what exactly aggregation is, energy aggregation strategy, how it works, the different types, pros and cons and everything else that you need to know about energy aggregation.

When it comes to sustainability and energy procurement options for your business, it can be pretty overwhelming – there’s a multitude of unfamiliar terms as well as resources available, so let’s start answering the basics.

What is energy aggregation?

The definition of energy aggregation is when a group of local institutions, small businesses or companies partner together in order to purchase energy from one or more developers at smaller volumes while still benefitting from the economic advantages of high volume power purchases. Many small companies sign virtual power purchase agreements (VPPAs) through electricity aggregators.

How does energy aggregation work?

In summary, aggregation works by allowing customers to have more buying power as a collective, in which they can secure more competitive energy prices.

Aggregate power also helps customers to gain access to renewable energy sources (such as RECs or even carbon offsets) and options and to be in a better position to receive expert advice on energy purchase decisions.

What is project aggregation?

Project aggregation refers to creating a portfolio of projects, blending a wide range of renewable energy projects together. You can think of it as something similar to investing in an index fund (rather than a single stock) – it allows for buyers to perform transactions with less risk and gain access to higher-value products in a single transaction rather than multiple transactions.

What is buyer aggregation?

Buyer aggregation is where non-utility buyers come together to increase their buying power in order to gain access to a larger range of projects. This allows smaller entities to access a range of projects that’s comparable to the range of projects available to large organizations such as Amazon or Google.

Pros and Cons of energy aggregation

Below are the advantages and disadvantages for energy aggregators:

The benefits of energy aggregation:

• Greater buying power and greater access to large projects and options suited to individual needs.
• Reduced energy pricing.
• Lowered transaction costs.
• Partnering with other companies in investing in a portfolio of energy projects limits exposure to risk.

The risks of energy aggregation:

• Matching supply with demand – project developers often want to sell the full output from their project rather than just a portion.
• Smaller buyers have a less attractive credit rating as compared to larger organizations – some developers will attach a risk premium when selling to smaller buyers.
• Coordination meeting the needs and requirements of every involved small business.

Is energy aggregation better than VPPA for small businesses?

Let’s start with what a VPPA is – a virtual power purchase agreement is a financial contract in which the company that intends to develop a renewable project receives financing for said project via an offtaker or third party. The developer (seller) will receive a fixed price for renewable energy that is set by the VPPA.

According to the Clean Energy Finance Forum, energy aggregation deals can be a better option for small businesses rather than VPPAs – often, the minimum transaction size can be quite large for VPPAS (as much as 50 megawatts (MW) for onshore wind and 30 MW for solar photovoltaics.), something which only large commercial or industrial organizations may be able to handle.

On the other hand, electricity aggregators can:

• Share legal and transaction costs across multiple buyers.
• Have potential for larger deals due to the support of multiple buyers.
• Sharing of best practices between buyers.
• Buyers with small load profiles are able to participate who are unable to sign onto VPPAs.

Energy Aggregation Examples Across the Globe

Wondering about real-life examples of electricity aggregators and aggregation? Read on for a list of current energy aggregation examples:

• Apple, Akamai, Etsy and Swiss Re (coming together to form the PMJ Gang) have committed to buy 290 MWs of electricity capacity from 2 projects, which is enough energy to serve 74,000 homes for a year.
• Bloomberg, Cox Enterprises, Gap Inc., Salesforce, and Workday came together to purchase 42.5 megawatts of a 100-megawatt North Carolina solar project by global renewable energy developer, service provider and wholesaler, BayWa r.e.

What is Community Choice Aggregation?

A community choice aggregation, also known as municipal aggregation, is one out of many energy aggregation programs you may encounter. As defined by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), these programs allow for local governments to “procure power on behalf of their residents, businesses, and municipal accounts from an alternative supplier while still receiving transmission and distribution service from their existing utility provider.”

CCAs are a great option for communities that want more control over what kind of energy is being sourced as well as for communities who want more green energy to be available than what is offered by the default utility.

How does Community Choice Aggregation work?

CCAs are currently authorized in the following US States: California, Illinois, Ohio, Massachusetts, New Jersey, New York, and Rhode Island.

Here’s what happens when a local government wants to put a CCA in place:

• The local government must hold a public hearing and pass a law to authorize the CCA.
• Customers will be given advance notice to be able to opt-out of the CCA – CCA participation is voluntary regardless of the state.
• Customers that do not opt-out are automatically enrolled in the program. In some instances, CCAs will be opt-in rather than opt out.
• CAs can also have a tiered structure with a standard option that customers are enrolled in unless they opt-out, and an opt-in “greener” option at a price premium.
• Prices for electricity under CCAs can be as much as 15-20 percent lower than the local residential price of electricity due to the collective buying power of entire communities and current market trends.
• Delivery and maintenance services are still handled by the local utility.

Advantages and Disadvantages of CCAs

Pros of Community Choice Aggregation:

• Enhanced renewable energy development.
• Encourages job creation.
• Local control of electricity generation – alignment with community’s environmental goals.
• Enables quicker shift to cleaner energy sources.
• Potential reduction in retail electric power prices.

Cons of Community Choice Aggregation:

• Implementation relies on enabling state legislation.
• Push back or resistance from utilities that would face competition from CCAs
• Opt-in vs Opt-out clauses can be a source of confusion for customers.
• Administrative costs.
• Requires navigating many CCA regulations and passing the appropriate ordinances.

Do you still have questions on energy aggregators or other corporate sustainability options? Ask our experts for a corporate green energy consultation at 1-780-628-1857 or by contacting [email protected].

What the 15% fossil fuel drop in 2020 means for Canadians

As reported by a CTV News article, refined petroleum product consumption (including fossil fuels such as gasoline, jet and diesel fuel) fell to 15 percent in 2020 as a result of travel and lockdown restrictions.

Conversely, renewable energy generation (wind and solar generation) increased by 12.3 percent over 2020. As such, the pandemic has provided an opportunity for both increased renewable energy investments and an energy transition towards green energy in North America overall.

Is this a long-term occurrence or a temporary trend?

The reduction in burning fossil fuels for energy appears to have been temporary. According to a CTV news article, consumption of diesel fuel, natural gas, and electricity generated by burning fossil fuels returned close to 2019 levels by December 2020. However, since Canada plans to move to a net-zero emissions model by 2050 to combat climate change, a drop in fossil fuel energy production and consumption is likely to reoccur over the next few years.

The future of energy in Canada, however, does involve a nontransient shift towards renewable energy – see the ‘Who’s leading the energy transition in Canada this year?’ section of this post for more details.

Key Stats and Figures

Below are some stats as reported by the Canada Energy Regulator to better help you conceptualize the changes in energy consumption during the pandemic:

• Imported oil costs fell 40 percent over the previous year to $11.5 billion, reflecting lower volumes and an overall decline in crude prices. In Canada, oil imports are used to feed refineries in the Atlantic Provinces, Quebec, and Ontario.
• Imports of crude oil decreased to 555,000 barrels per day (b/d), down from 693,000 b/d in 2019.
• Imports of oil into Quebec decreased from 203 Mb/d to 153 Mb/d in 2020 – costs decreased to $52.92 per barrel.
• Imports of oil into Ontario decreased from 97 Mb/d to 43 Mb/d in 2020 – costs decreased to $53.37 per barrel.
• Imports of oil into New Brunswick decreased in 2020 to 245 Mb/d from 278 Mb/d – costs decreased to $58.89 per barrel.
• Imports of oil into Newfoundland and Labrador decreased from 106 Mb/d to 29 Mb/d in 2020 – costs decreased to $77.87 per barrel.

Who’s leading the energy transition in Canada this year?

According to the Canada Energy Regulator, prairie provinces (Alberta, Saskatchewan and Manitoba) in Canada are leading the country’s growth in renewable energy capacity over the next three years.

Below are some key points regarding the energy transition:

• In Saskatchewan, wind capacity is expected to triple while wind capacity will nearly double in Alberta between 2020 and 2023.
• Solar capacity growth is also projected, with Alberta adding on 1,200 MW by 2023.
• The overall share of renewables for Alberta in the capacity mix is projected to increase from 16% in 2017 to 126% in 2023.
• In Saskatchewan, the renewable share of capacity is expected to increase from 25% in 2018 to 33% in 2023.
• Renewable capacity growth is slowed most noticeably in Ontario. Between 2010 and 2017, renewable capacity grew 6.8% per year, while between 2018 and 2023, growth in Ontario slows to 0.4% per year as capacity grows by 466 MW over this period.
• New large-scale hydro, wind and solar projects will push the share of renewables in Canada’s electricity mix from 67% of installed capacity in 2017 to 71% in 2023.
• Overall, hydro is the most dominant source of electricity in Canada accounting for 55% of total installed capacity and 59% of generation, with British Columbia, Manitoba, Quebec, Newfoundland and Labrador, and Yukon deriving more than 90% of their power from hydro.

If you’ve been wanting to transition towards clean energy but don’t know where to start, our guides on Green Energy Plans as well as our guide on RECs, Carbon Offsets and Green Building Certification can help you get started. You’ll find common definitions for terms related to renewable energy as well as comparisons for how various options differ (e.g. renewable energy certificates versus carbon offsets, and how VPPAs work.)

Clean energy plans are available for residential, business, and commercial and industrial consumers – to learn more about the green plans or options in your specific area, you can contact our team or fill the form above for a free energy quote.

What to know about the greener homes grant in Canada

Canada’s government recently introduced the “Canada Greener Homes Grant Initiative,” which aims to provide grants to make your home more energy-efficient. And the program already has thousands of applications: Canadians have taken note, visiting the official website in such numbers that it crashed for several hours.  

The Canadian Government has committed to achieving net-zero emissions by the year 2050, introducing the Canadian Net-Zero Emissions Accountability Act in late 2020, which if passed, “formalizes Canada’s 2050 target, and establishes a series of interim emissions reduction targets at 5-year milestones towards that goal”. Despite the Act’s long-term goal, the time to think about our emissions is now. 

Climate change is a serious issue facing everyone. While greenhouse emissions from cars and the food we eat are trending topics, it is not the whole story. It is estimated that 18% of Canada’s total Greenhouse Gas emissions are the result of the homes we live in. 

The Canada Greener Homes Grant arrives at a perfect time and could help thousands of homeowners make their homes more energy-efficient, which is both cost- and eco-friendly.

For more reasons we need to think about being energy-efficient, you can check out our full guide.

So, what is the Greener Homes Grant?  

The Canadian Greener Homes Grant initiative is a multi-faceted initiative that aims to improve the energy efficiency of our homes while promoting job growth in Energy Advisor careers. 

One part of this initiative is over 700,000 grants allocated for Canadians to add energy-efficient home improvements to their current homes – up to a $5000 retrofit grant for each household. An additional $600 is allocated for pre- and post-retrofit evaluations for homeowners. These evaluations aim to provide Canadians with expert advice to make the best use of the retrofit grants, but also improve the knowledge of Canadians on how to be more energy-efficient.  

To support this initiative, the second aspect of the Canadian Greener Homes Grant is to promote careers for Energy Advisor positions, particularly for under-represented groups: Indigenous and racialized individuals, individuals who identify as LGBTQ+ and in underserved areas, including Canada’s lesser populated provinces and territories and in rural, remote, or Indigenous communities.  

How does the Canada Greener Homes Grant work?  

As we broke down in the last section, the three sections of the Canada Greener Homes Grant are 

• Grants for retrofits up to $5,000.  
• Grants for pre- and post-retrofit evaluations up to $600. 
• Expansion of Energy Advisors throughout Canada. 

Homeowners who live in a new home older than 6 months are eligible for up to $600 for the cost of pre- and post-retrofit EnerGuide evaluations. The pre-retrofit EnerGuide evaluations aims to highlight inefficiencies in your home, and things that can be done to improve the energy efficiency of your home.  

Once your EnerGuide pre-retrofit evaluation is completed, you will receive a report about which retrofit options will be effective at improving the efficiency of your home. Then you can begin retrofitting your home, using at least one of the recommended retrofits according to the pre-retrofit EnerGuide evaluation. Upon completion of the retrofits to the standards and restrictions highlighted on the government website, you will then schedule your post-retrofit evaluation, which will record the improvements in emissions, which can determine how much money you can be reimbursed for on your retrofits.  

So why should you think about retrofitting your home? Reducing your carbon emissions is always a good thing, especially as we see more of the impacts of global warming. However, these retrofits can save you on energy costs and can save you money long term.  

For a more in-depth look at how improving the energy efficiency of your home can save you money, you can check out this article.   

The third aspect of this grant is grants to improve the training, recruitment, and opportunity for Energy Advisor roles throughout Canada, particularly for underserviced areas and underrepresented people. The Canadian government has allocated $10 Million dollars over the next 5 years to support Service Organizations, Indigenous governments or organizations, or other legal entities can be eligible for grants for their projects that fit these criteria, encouraging job growth in the Energy Advisor sector.  

Who can apply for the green home retrofit grant? 

Canadian homeowners can apply to be a part of this initiative. You will be required to provide proof of ownership, using your property tax bill number, and you will also need to demonstrate that the property is your primary residence, through government issued ID with address or a utility bill. Only one homeowner per residence can register for the grants.  

Other owners of buildings that house many people, like owners of small, multi-unit residential buildings, Indigenous governments or organizations, or other bodies that own homes that house Indigenous households can apply for multiple home retrofits.  

Indigenous governments or organizations, or housing management bodies, representative bodies or Indigenous service delivery organizations with formal partnerships with Indigenous governments or organizations can also apply for the grant, up to multiple homes, as long as the home is owned by the applicant and is home to an Indigenous household.  

New homes, defined as homes that are six months old or less based on the date of occupancy by the first homeowner, are exempt from this grant.  

How to apply for the Greener Homes Grant?

1. First, we recommend researching the CGHG website to double-check eligibility criteria for the grant. Reading this entire article will be a good start, however certain restrictions, requirements, or criteria will be more extensively detailed on the government page.  

2. The first step you will need to take in the application process is to registering and booking a pre-retrofit evaluation of your home, which can be done in the Greener Homes portal here. Residents of Quebec and Nova Scotia have provincial programs that they will need to book though for their EnerGuide evaluation. New Brunswick is also encouraged to apply through its provincial program. Once registered and booked, your pre-retrofit EnerGuide evaluation will be performed by an NRCan registered energy advisor.  

3. Your pre-retrofit EnerGuide evaluation will come with recommendations of what you can do to improve the energy efficiency in your home. You can decide which of these recommendations will work best, but you will need to complete at least one retrofit recommended in your pre-retrofit evaluation.  

4. Once your retrofits have been completed, you can book your post-retrofit evaluation to begin the reimbursement process. You will also need to submit any required documents to the government.  Your post-retrofitted home will be evaluated to determine the impact the retrofits have resulted in making your home more energy-efficient, and the degree that your home has become more energy efficient.  

Finally, in the Greener homes portal, you will need to confirm your grant total before receiving your reimbursement cheque.  

Residents of Quebec and Nova Scotia need to apply directly through their provincial programs to book their EnerGuide evaluation and register. Residents of New Brunswick are also encouraged to apply through their provincial programs. 

For Quebec residents looking for more programs or rebates for energy efficiency, we suggest you check out this link.  

Contact a registered energy advisor in your area

Select your province

Alberta	Ontario
British Columbia	Quebec
Nova Scotia	Northwest Territories
New Brunswick	Yukon
Manitoba	Saskatchewan
Newfoundland and Labrador

What are the eligible home upgrades and retrofits?   

There are a number of funding opportunities and retrofits that the loans offered by the Canada Greener Homes Grant can reimburse. The grants all have conditions regarding the effectiveness of the retrofits, and conditions like any retrofit equipment needing to be purchased in Canada, or if purchased online, purchased through a Canadian online retailer.  

The eligible retrofits you can add to your home include: 

• Home insulation: The Canada Greener Homes Grant initiative enables homeowners to improve their home insulation, reducing heat loss, which could mean lower energy bills down the line. The goal of this aspect of the grant aims to improve the R-value or RSI (Résistance Système International) of the insulation of your home. While eligibility and reimbursement vary between different types of insulation retrofits, Canadians can be reimbursed up to $5000 for improving their Attic/Ceiling Insulation, Exterior Wall insulation, Exposed floor insulation, Basement / Foundation Insulation and Crawlspace insulation.  

• Air-sealing: One of the most important retrofits you can make is improving the loss of energy from air leaving your house, which can mean loss of heat. Air-sealing is important, the Government of Canada suggests that improving the Air-sealing of your house should be first in any retrofit strategy. Upon completion of your Renovation Upgrade Report (RUR), you will be given a target to improve the airtightness of your home. Meeting said target will gain a grant of $550, improvements upon the target amount can net a grant up to $1000. Professional air sealing is recommended to improve the airtightness of your home. Your post-retrofit report will provide more details regarding your target value.  

• Windows and Doors: Another tactic that reduces heat loss in your home is improving the energy efficiency of your windows and doors – which can be a huge source of heat loss. Replacing your windows and their frames with high-performance Energy Star certified window, or replacing your doors with Energy Star certified doors, can reduce heat loss and save you money. Replacing your windows or glass doors with the Energy Star Most Efficient models can be reimbursed up to $250 per opening, whereas replacing your windows or doors with Energy Certified models can be reimbursed up to $125 per opening. For the specific eligible models, check the government page.   

• Thermostats: Smart thermostats are impactful: they allow you to improve your carbon footprint while improving comfort and the amount you save on heating, allowing you to remotely adjust your temperature. They are also inexpensive too. The Canada Greener Homes Grant initiative offers a reimbursement of up to $50 dollars if you add a smart thermostat. However, this must be combined with another retrofit measure from the CGHG, except for new heat pumps, which often already come installed with new thermostats.  

• Heating: Canada’s winters mean energy-efficient heating is important. It is estimated that space heating is the source of 60% of the energy used in the average Canadian home each year. Retrofitting your home to utilize more energy-efficient equipment like heat pumps are included in the Canada Greener Homes Grant initiative.  

Heat pumps are devices that can extract heat and move it where its needed, extracting heat available to warm the house in the winter, or extracting heat from inside the house to cool it in the summer.  

Heat pumps can be expensive due to the number of components in the system. Depending on where you live in Canada and your home, the cost-savings of these systems may vary, however since more thermal energy is produced with these systems than the electricity used to transfer that energy, it is thought that these systems are over 100% efficient.  

Grants for adding a ground source heat pump are available up to $5,000, or for replacing a ground source heat pump are available up to $3,000. Grants for adding an air source heat pump are available up to $4,000, or adding a cold climate heat pumps up to $5,000. Grants for replacing your domestic water heater with an Energy Star certified model are available up to $1,000. Your heat pump unit must be installed by a licensed professional, and be on a list of eligible products, found on the official Government of Canada home retrofit page.

• Renewable energy: Solar is a growing source of renewable energy, and the Canada Greener Homes Grant initiative allows homeowners to receive energy grants to install solar photovoltaic technology that converts sunlight into electricity. Grants are available up to $1,000 dollars per 1.0 kW of peak power capacity of the system installed. The system installed must be made up of a photovoltaic panel and inverter and be certified to CSA standards.  

• Resiliency measures: As climate change impacts our weather and climate, more environmental factors can pose a substantial risk to the safety of your home. Resiliency to fire, floods, storms, and power loss are aspects that the Canadian Greener Homes Grant can improve upon. The following reimbursements to improve resiliency must be combined with another energy efficiency retrofit. These measures include grants for connecting batteries to a solar-powered photovoltaic system, (up to $1,000), adding a roofing membrane underlayment to protect from moisture (up to $150), foundational waterproofing (up to $875), and moisture-proofing crawl space floor, walls and headers (up to $600).  

If you want extra ideas on what you can do to improve the energy efficiency of your home and lifestyle, check out this article with 35 ways you can be more energy efficient. 

Canada Greener Homes Grant Deadlines  

The Canadian federal government is aiming to invest $2.6 billion over seven years in the Canada Greener Homes Grant initiative, with up to 700,000 grants available. While no deadlines are currently listed on the website, over 30,000 applications have been received by the government. 

If you missed your opportunity, do not worry: the Canada Greener Homes Grant initiative is one step in many commitments the government is planning to improve the energy efficiency of our homes. One such program is an interest-free loan program to assist homeowners complete deep home retrofits, hinted at being unveiled later this summer. If you wish to receive updates for when this loan initiative becomes available, register here.  

How does the energy advisor recruitment, training, and mentorship project work?

One aspect of the Canadian Greener Homes Grant Initiative is to improve recruitment, training and mentorship for energy advisors. The Canadian government is looking to recruit and train 2,000 people to do energy audits for this program, and future environmentally conscious initiatives that will be happening in the upcoming years.  

This initiative seeks to increase the number of energy advisors available, particularly in underserved areas (including the North, prairie provinces, Newfoundland and Labrador, and rural, remote and Indigenous communities) and under-represented groups, including women, Indigenous individuals, racialized individuals, individuals with disabilities, and individuals who identify as LGBTQ+.  

The government is currently accepting proposals for the task for training and recruiting these new workers, until July 8^th, 2021. These proposals must include one of the following aspects:  

Training and improving accessibility of training for energy advisor opportunities (funded up to $200,000 per year), mentorship and improving accessibility to mentorship opportunities to under-represented groups (funded up to $150,000 per year), recruitment and awareness of opportunities of energy advisors or service organizations (funded up to $100,000 per year), upskilling and professional development of current energy advisors (up to $100,000 per year), or improving the accessibility of EnerGuide evaluations for underserved areas or under represented groups (funded up to $100,000 per year).  

Eligible applicants include governments and their departments or agencies of all levels below federal, Indigenous governments or organizations, and legal entities incorporated or registered in Canada, including for-profit and not-for-profit organizations.  

What does retrofit mean?  

 Retrofitting simply means to add something new to something that did not have it before. In terms of the Canadian Greener Homes Grant initiative, this means adding new improvements to your home that can improve how energy efficient it is.       

 What is an energy advisor?  

An Energy Advisor, or EA, is a designation that is registered with Natural Resource Canada, which certifies the qualification to deliver EnerGuide ratings for eligible homes in Canada. The profession of EA in Canada requires, among other aspects, knowledge and experience in the EnerGuide Rating system, building science and practices, energy efficiency renovation practices, as well as data collection. 

On top of this skillset, successful EA candidates will pass two qualification exams – the Foundation Level Exam and the Energy Advisor Exam, and be affiliated with an NRCan-licenced service organization.  

What is EnerGuide?  

EnerGuide might be recognizable to you by the black-and-white label found on your appliances. These labels show how much energy a product uses, allowing you to compare between different models. The Canadian black and white EnerGuide label details annual energy consumption in kilowatt-hours (kWh), as well as a scale that highlights how the model compares to other models in its class, from those that use the most energy to those that uses the least.  

Similar to how fridges to lightbulbs and many things in between can have an EnerGuide rating, your home can too. An EnerGuide label for your home is an official record of the energy performance, which can be used to help increase your home’s resale value. Using similar metrics, the Canadian Greener Homes Grant initiative will identify how much energy your house uses yearly in gigajoules, as well as graphs that highlight where the most energy is consumed in your house, details the sources of your energy use, and details your impact on the environment.  

What is the contact information for the Canada Greener Homes Grant? 

Due to higher-than-normal call volumes, the Government recommends registering for the Canadian Greener Homes Grant online. 

• Website: nrcan.gc.ca/energy-efficiency/homes/canada-greener-homes-grant/23441 
• Phone: 1-833-674-8282 
• TTY: 1 800-465-7735 

What is the best way to compare energy rates in my area? 

While retrofitting your home to be more energy efficient is one way to reduce your energy costs, another potential way to save on your energy bills is by comparing the rates for electricity and natural gas providers in your area.   

EnergyRates.ca is a free and unbiased tool that can help you compare energy rates between all the providers in your area and help you find the right one. Plus, it has useful resources such as this guide that will walk you through switching energy providers. 

Whether looking for the best energy prices for large commercial sites, your small local business, or your residential home, EnergyRates.ca can help you find the best energy rates. Just fill in your postal code and what kind of energy service you are looking for, and you will be able to compare rates in seconds.

Registered energy advisors in Alberta

• Hometech Energy Solutions Inc.
  • 1-866-561-0708
• 3D Energy
  • (780) 416-8336
• Enervision
  • 1-866-871-7563
• CoEfficient Building Science
  • 1-800-604-0234

Registered energy advisors in Ontario

• Energuy
  • 1-888-442-9577
• Enertest Corporation
  • 1-877-327-1504
• Acumen Energy Consultants
  • 1-833-422-8636
• AmeriSpec Inspection Services
  • 1-866-284-6010
• Eco Advantage Energy Advisors Inc.
  • 1-855-449-2387

Registered energy advisors in British Columbia

• Hometech Energy Solutions Inc.
  • 1-778-839-4545
• EnerTech Solutions Ltd
  • (250) 896-1421
• Total Home Solutions Inc.
  • 1-888-860-1766
• HomeStep.ca
  • 604-629-8300

Registered energy advisors in Quebec

• Contact Transition énergétique Québec
  • 1-866-266-0008

Registered energy advisors in Nova Scotia

• Homesol Building Solutions Inc.
  • 1-855-489-5305
• Trinity Inspection Services
  • (902) 396-4333
• Sustainable Housing
  • 1-877-722-2842
• ThermalWise
  • 877-771-9276

Registered energy advisors in the Northwest Territories

• Acacia Engineering Ltd.
  • (403) 245-2200
• Arctic Energy Alliance
  • 1-867-920-3333

Registered energy advisors in New Brunswick

• ThermalWise
  • 877-771-9276
• Enercheck Solutions
  • 1 (866) 990-2499
• Canadian Home Builders’ Assoc. NB
  • (506) 459-7219

Registered energy advisors in Yukon

• Energy Branch Government of Yukon
  • 1-867-393-7063

Registered energy advisors in Manitoba

• Energy Werx Corp.
  • 204-390-3064
• prairieHOUSE Performance Inc.
  • 204-221-5725

Registered energy advisors in Saskatchewan

• Amerispec of Canada
  • 306-652-8779
• Sun Ridge Residential Inc
  • (306) 665-2525
• NRG Inspections and Consulting
  • 306-242-1333

Registered energy advisors in Newfoundland and Labrador

• Amerispec of Canada
  • 709-687-4673
• Acumen Energy Consultants
  • 1-833-422-8636
• ThermalWise
  • 877-771-9276
• Sustainable Housing
  • 1-877-722-2842

In early April 2020, right after quarantine started in most Canadian provinces, EnergyRates.ca published an article describing how energy demand was being impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic. More than a year later, now with provinces easing restrictions and businesses starting to reopen, we’ve decided to revisit our article to see what’s changed since then.

Since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic last year, there have been several changes not only in our personal lives but also nationally and globally as well. For example, the stay-at-home measures introduced at the start of the pandemic meant many of us facing substantially increased home energy bills.

To give you an idea of how things have progressed over the past year, we’ll go over how the pandemic impacted energy demand at the beginning versus its impact on energy usage now, as well as how energy consumption was affected globally. Additionally, we will provide insight into how some Canadian provinces responded to the shifts in energy usage.

How COVID-19 initially impacted energy demand in Canada

In several provinces, there was a decrease in average electricity demand and consumption anywhere from a 10% decrease after the start of the lockdown in Alberta to an overall decrease of about 13% in commercial electricity load in British Columbia.

However, there wasn’t a decrease in all areas of energy consumption – residential peak demand saw about a 2% increase in Ontario, according to data from the IESO.

The table below from the Canadian Energy Research Institute summarizes the effects of COVID-19 on monthly electricity demand by province from March 2020 to June 2020:

Provinces	AB	BC	NB	NS	ON	PE
March	-1.5%					6.4%
April	-3.7%	-5.2%	-4.9%	-5.7%	-6.3%
May	-5.9%	-6.6%	-5.2%	-5.8%	-5.6%
June	-5.5%	-5.7%	-10.5%		2.4%	-8.7%

You can learn more about the initial COVID-19 impacts on energy demand in Canada in Alberta, Ontario, British Columbia, Quebec, and Manitoba in our blog post here.

More than a year later, how has COVID-19 impacted energy usage in Canada?

According to data from Statistics Canada, Alberta, Ontario and Saskatchewan showed the largest declines in economic activities. Lowered economic activity overall was reflected in Alberta’s decline in energy prices during summer 2020. However, the province reached a record-breaking power demand in February 2021 due to a cold snap, which has greatly affected electricity prices in the province since then.

In particular, Ontario power demand has seen an increase in intra-day usages of electricity according to an article from CTV News. This is in part due to individuals staying home for both work and school, and deviating from the usual patterns of energy usage (e.g. powering up after waking up and powering down shortly after to leave for work). Demand forecasting, as a result, has become more difficult. In the future, this could affect grid stability during peak usage.

A COVID-19 impact study by London Economics International expects that long-term residential consumption in Ontario will increase by 4.6% for hydro consumption and that the load from office buildings will decrease by 6.5% as a result of the reductions of employees working in offices.

British Columbia, Quebec, New Brunswick and Manitoba overall had their economic activities less affected.

A study of residential building energy usage in Quebec City found that overall, COVID-19 impacts on energy usage were only found when lockdown restrictions were the strictest. Peak values of consumption appeared to be the same overall, just distributed differently in comparison to non-restriction times.

Has global energy consumption also been affected by COVID-19?

There has definitely been changes in world energy usage, demand, and consumption due to the pandemic.

For example, an article published in Appl Energy noted a drop in global energy demand during the lockdown as a result of restrictions of social activities, economic activity, construction, and manufacturing. A comparison between July 2020 and July 2019 found that peak reduction rates of electricity consumption were larger than 10% in France, Germany, Italy, Spain, UK, China and India during July 2020.

Additionally, traditional fossil energy demand declined whereas renewable energy demand increased as a result of lockdown measures according to the IEA.

How much renewable energy represented a region’s electricity mix depended also on wind and solar parks in operation, weather conditions, and total demand. For example, in June and July, hydroelectricity made up a larger portion of renewable energy generation in China as a result of the heavy rain season whereas hydroelectricity generation tapered off in November due to seasonal differences.

In Europe, lowered electricity demand recovered to 2019 levels as restrictions were relaxed in October 2020 – by the end of the year, there was a marked recovery of electricity demand that was even above 2019 levels after values were adjusted for the weather.

For India, electricity demand recovered to above 2019 levels in early August 2020, reaching 8% above 2019 demand at the year’s end.

How did Canadian provinces react to the pandemic energy-wise?

In response to the pandemic and subsequent restrictions on various activities and businesses, several provinces launched programs to assist residential, commercial, and small business consumers with paying utilities. We’ve listed such programs by province below:

Alberta

In Alberta, a 90-day deferral for utility payments was available for Albertans who consumed less than 250,000 kWh (kilowatt-hours) of electricity per year, and less than 2,500 GJ (gigajoules) of natural gas per year.

Quebec

In Quebec, measures were introduced such that customers would not be cut off from power for non-payment – administration fees were suspended for non-payment until September 30, 2020.

British Columbia

In BC, BC Hydro introduced the COVID-19 Relief fund to assist customers with paying their hydro bills. If customers were approved, they would receive a one-time bill credit equivalent to 3 times the amount of their average monthly bill amount.

Ontario

During summer 2020, the Ontario government made $9 million available for the COVID-19 Energy Assistance Program for supporting residential customers with overdue amounts on their energy bills as a result of the pandemic. Customers were eligible for up to $750 in support for going towards electricity and natural gas bills. Additionally, consumers could also save on energy bills by using energy during off-peak hours as per time-of-use pricing in Ontario.

kW, MW and GW: How electricity units work and how to convert them

Kilowatts, megawatts and gigawatts are all power units – beyond that, many people don’t know differences in use for these terms. After all, only knowing that, for example, a megawatt is 1000 kilowatts doesn’t really give you the context for why one term is used rather than another.

In this post, we’ll be explaining various different electricity measurements, how to convert these units to one another, what contexts each measurement of electricity is appropriate for, as well as sharing other useful information to know about electricity measurements.

What is a watt (W)?

Watts are the basic unit of power that is used to measure thermal, electric, and mechanical power. Examples of common appliances that will have their energy consumption measured in watts include light bulbs and computer monitors.

What is a kilowatt (KW)? How much is a kilowatt?

A kilowatt is another measure of power – the number of watts in a kilowatt is 1000. Conversions up to kilowatts happen when we talk about residential and commercial power. Some appliances, such as electric water heaters, will have their energy consumption measured in kilowatts.

What is a megawatt (MW)? What can a megawatt power?

When it comes to megawatts, it is usually used for measuring the output of a power plant, or the amount of electricity that’s needed by a city. According to Nuclear Regulatory Commission, a megawatt of capacity is equal to the electricity consumed by 400-900 homes in a year. There are 1000 KW to a megawatt or 1000000 watts in a megawatt.

What is gigawatt? How many megawatts in a gigawatt?

Gigawatts are useful for representing the capacity of large power plants or several power plants, including coal, nuclear and hydroelectric power plants. A single gigawatt is 1000 megawatts or 1 billion watts.

What is terawatt?

One terawatt is equal to 1000000 megawatts or 1000 gigawatts – it’s useful for conceptualizing how much energy is being used worldwide.

Below are common conversions between these power units. Read on for how to calculate these conversions using relatively simple formulas.

Convert kilowatts (kW) to megawatts (MW)

The formula for this conversion is P(MW) = P(kW)/1000.

This reads as the power in megawatts is equal to the power in kilowatts divided by 1000.

Below is an example of how to use the formula:

Let’s say we have 5000 kilowatts that we want to convert into megawatts.

P(MW) = 5000/1000 = 5 MW

Convert megawatts (MW) to gigawatts (GW)

The formula for this conversion is P(GW) = P(MW)/1000.

This reads as the power in gigawatts is equal to the power in megawatts divided by 1000.

Below is an example of how to use the formula:

Let’s say we have 3300 megawatts we want to convert into gigawatts.

P(GW) = 3300/1000 = 3.3 GW

Convert kilowatts (kW) to gigawatts (GW)

The formula for this conversion is P(GW) = P(kW)/1000000.

This reads as the power in gigawatts is equal to the power in kilowatts divided by 1000000.

Below is an example of how to use the formula:

Let’s say we have 6000000 kilowatts we want to convert into gigawatts.

P(GW) = 6000000/1000000 = 6 GW

Convert kilowatts (kW) to terawatts (TW)

The formula for this conversion is P(TW) = P(kW)/1000000000.

This reads as the power in terawatts is equal to the power in kilowatts divided by 1000000000.

Below is an example of how to use the formula:

Let’s say we have 8000000000 kilowatts we want to convert into terawatts.

P(TW) = 8000000000/1000000000 = 8 TW

Watts vs Amps: What’s the difference?

An ampere measures electric current or the flow of electric charge in a circuit. Watts are a measure of power – power measures the rate at which energy flows. One watt is the rate at which a single ampere of current flows through an electrical potential difference of a volt. Electric potential difference is the external work required to move charge from one location to another in an electric field.

Global electricity generation: How much electricity is generated in the world?

According to the International Energy Agency,  25506 TWh of electricity was generated in 2017.

More questions? Go to EnergyRates.ca where we cover a wide array of energy-related topics in Alberta, British Columba, Manitoba, Ontario, Saskatchewan, and Quebec. For example, if you’ve ever wanted to know how much using your appliances costs you, we have a guide for that.

Plus, EnergyRates.ca is a free and unbiased cost comparison tool that can help you find the best electricity and natural gas rates in your province, regardless of if you’re a residential, business, or commercial/industrial energy consumer.

What is a smart grid?

The definition of a smart grid varies somewhat from source to source – below are a few definitions from a paper by the Canadian Electricity Association that altogether encompass what a smart grid is:

“A smart grid is a modern electricity system. It uses sensors, monitoring, communications, automation and computers to improve the flexibility, security, reliability, efficiency, and safety of the electricity system.”

“The smart grid takes the existing electricity delivery system and makes it ‘smart’ by linking and applying seamless communications systems that can: gather and store data and convert the data to intelligence; communicate intelligence omnidirectionally among components in the ‘smart’ electricity system; and allow automated control that is responsive to that intelligence.”

“An automated, widely distributed energy delivery network, the Smart Grid will be characterized by a two-way flow of electricity and information and will be capable of monitoring everything from power plants to customer preferences to individual appliances.  It incorporates into the grid the benefits of distributed computing and communications to deliver real-time information and enable the near-instantaneous balance of supply and demand at the device level.”

How can a smart grid affect Canada’s energy market?

Smart grid implementation can help generate new jobs in the energy market, encourage more renewable energy generation, as well as increase the reliability, resiliency, and flexibility of the power system so that energy prices are less affected by severe weather conditions. Additionally, the implementation of a smart grid would help place Canada on track for reaching net-zero emissions by 2050.

Since smart grid technology modernizes the safe and secure delivery of electricity as well as provides foundations for new market structures, it’s possible that a lesser proportion of distribution charges from consumer power bills would go towards maintenance of the power system in the long run.

The demand response of consumers would also be improved, meaning that they would be able to better actively respond to price signals and system conditions by adjusting their electricity usage. This is because smart grid technologies support greater levels of demand response by providing better monitoring, control, and automation of almost all aspects of consumers’ energy use (e.g., through smart meters.)

 Overall, improved demand response can help reduce peak demand and decrease occurrences of power outages.

Smart grid examples

One example of a smart grid is the Biden Smart Grid, which is yet to be implemented. The priority of the Biden Smart Grid has been pushed up by the recent failure of Texas’ massive electrical grid due to severe weather conditions.

Priorities of the Biden Smart Grid include creating well-paying job growth in sectors such as clean energy and building electric vehicles, reducing greenhouse emissions, as well as major upgrades in grid communications.

Another example of a smart grid is South Africa’s Smart Grid vision – below are the key drivers of the establishment of a smart grid system in South Africa as outlined by the Global Transmission Report:

• Growing energy demand.
• Capacity expansion and diversified mix.
• Energy independence and security.
• Environment and climate change.
• Technology advancement.
• Increased efficiency via grid operations.
• Advanced customer services.
• Infrastructure reliability and security.

What is the Smart Grid Program?

As defined by Natural Resources Canada (NRCan), the Smart Grid Program is one of NRCan’s targeted national programs addressing key infrastructure required to advance the goals of the Pan Canadian Framework on Clean Growth and Climate Change.

Overall, the objective of the Smart Grid Program is to accelerate the development of smart grids to reduce GHG emissions and generate economic and social benefits such as new jobs. Over the course of four years, $100 million will be invested in deployment and demonstration projects that will help provide solutions for reducing greenhouse gas emissions, smart grid management and reducing the economic impact on consumers.

Which energy initiatives are covered by the Smart Grid Program?

• Energy market and rate innovation.
• Solar energy.
• Wind power.
• Advanced Inverter Functions.
• Energy storage.
• Load Management.
• EV Integration.
• Artificial Intelligence.

A closer look at the main smart grid projects across Canada

In this section, we have covered smart projects in only deregulated provinces – however, there are more programs in other provinces as well that are not deregulated.

EPCOR (Alberta): Epcor Smart Grid System (ESGS)

• The ESGS is a 4-year project spanning from 2018-2022.
• It will receive total contributions worth $10,677,000 from NRCAN.

EPCOR will deploy a solar photovoltaic facility with an integrated battery energy storage system and an Intelligent Distributed Energy Management System (DERMS) software that will altogether reduce the peak load demand at the E.L. Smith Water Treatment Plant and will allow for the addressing of capacity shortfalls in the power system infrastructure.

EQUS REA (Alberta): Canada’s 1st Member-Owned Rural Smart Grid Project

• EQUS REA is a 3-year project spanning from 2018-2021.
• It will receive total contributions worth $2,261,363 from NRCan.

The EQUS REA smart grid project will address challenges such as accessibility and communications, terrain, and distance when it comes to providing service to rural customers. Through deploying an ultra-rural radio frequency mesh network, renewable energy sources will be renewed alongside EV charging stations. Additionally, battery storage will be installed.

Overall, this smart grid project will improve customer engagement and awareness as well as response times and repairs for outages in rural areas.

ENMAX Power (Alberta): Integrating Distributed Generation into Secondary Networks in Large Urban Centres

• This is a 4-year project spanning from 2018-2022.
• It will receive total contributions worth $1,426,000 from NRCan.

This ENMAX project aims to develop and demonstrate a solution for accommodating bi-directional power flows on the urban electrical grid. This would allow for urban centres such as Calgary to have a greater capacity for allowing generation from renewable and distributed energy. While this project will consider solar photovoltaics, it can also expand to consider other generation types and resources.

Successful completion of this project could lead to significantly reduced greenhouse gases and other benefits to the energy market and the environment.

Ultimately, this project will demonstrate how solar photovoltaics and other forms of distributed generation and energy resources can be safely integrated into secondary and spot networks.

SaskPower (Saskatchewan): SaskPower Distribution Modernization Program

• This is a 4-year project spanning from 2018-2022.
• It will receive a total contribution worth $5,272,960 from NRCan.

The SaskPower Distribution Modernization Program will modernize and upgrade the SaskPower electrical grid through investment in both control from the Provincial Distribution Control Centre as well as central monitoring.

SaskPower’s workforce efficiency will be improved through upgrading existing substation and feeder sensors, the deployment of telecommunications and integrating information from the Advanced Metering Infrastructure. In the future, integration of distributed energy resources and energy storage will be made possible through this project.

SSM PUC (Ontario): Sault Smart Grid

• This is a 3-year project spanning from 2018-2021.
• It will receive a total contribution worth 11,807,000 from NRCan.

PUC distribution will deploy a community-scale smart grid in Sault Ste. Marie will cover 100% of the PUC service area. Overall, this project will improve PUC’s system efficiency, resiliency, and reliability through the integration of complementary smart grid technologies such as distribution automation as well as the enhancement of existing Advanced Metering Infrastructure.

Additionally, this project will also be an enabling platform for renewable energy that also expands customer opportunities for taking advantage of enhanced energy services and solutions.

Braceridge Generation (Ontario): Smart, Proactive, Enabled, Energy Distribution; Intelligently, Efficiently, Responsive (SPEEDIER) Project

• This is a 4-year project spanning from 2018-2022.
• It will receive total contributions worth $2,900,000 from NRCan.

This project will modernize the Town of Parry Sound’s electricity grid in order to facilitate a shift towards a carbon-neutral smart community. This will be done through Distributed Energy Resource Management to increase visibility and control of loads and variable renewable generation.

Additionally, solar, energy storage systems and automation technologies will be deployed to reduce the load on the transmission station as well as reduce dependency on far away energy resources.

Another goal for this project is to develop smart residential demand management systems through controllable hot water tanks, EV chargers and battery storage.

London Hydro (Ontario): West 5 Smart Grid Project

• This is a 4-year project spanning from 2018-2022.
• It will receive total contributions worth $5,084,000 from NRCan.

This project looks to enable the development of the West 5 Net-Zero Energy community and microgrid in London, Ontario, to demonstrate Canadian leadership in the field of integrated smart energy system technologies. Overall, this project aims to be Canada’s first large-scale, fully integrated, net-zero energy community.

Below are the innovations that will be integrated into the West 5 Smart Grid Project:

• Microgeneration.
• Renewable sources of energy.
• Tighter building envelopes.
• Smarter heating and cooling systems.
• Direct current generation, distribution, and energy storage.
• System monitoring.
• Vehicle to grid storage.
• Improved electric vehicle charging infrastructure.

Alectra Utilities (Ontario): Power, House Hybrid; Minimizing GHGs and Maximizing Grid Benefits

• This is a 4-year project spanning from 2018-2022.
• It will receive total contributions worth $1,160,000 from NRCan.

Alectra will work towards demonstrating significant reductions in total household greenhouse gases alongside the provision of energy for space and water heating, transportation, and appliances via controllable electrical and thermal energy technologies to be installed in 10 Markham homes.

Alectra Utilities (Ontario): GridExchange

• This is a 3-year project spanning from 2018-2021.
• It will receive total contributions worth $1,850,000 from NRCan.

Alectra will demonstrate the ability of blockchain software technology to provide real-time transparency, tracking and management of Distributed Energy Resources’ participation in providing energy services.

Through a blockchain software platform, Alectra will issue requests for the POWER.HOUSE systems to provide hypothetical market services. All aspects of market participation will be transacted through and recorded using this blockchain platform.

In support of participation, customers will receive compensation through virtual currency – this currency can be exchanged for goods and services at participating merchants or as other forms of value in the marketplace.

Independent Electricity System Operator (IESO) (Ontario): York Region Non-Wires Alternatives Demonstration Project

• This is a 4-year project spanning from 2018-2022.
• It will receive total contributions worth $5,000,000 from NRCan.

This project will focus on developing an interoperability framework, assessing division of grid functions, transmission-distribution coordination requirements and the value of higher-distributed energy resource (DERs) for both local and wholesale-level needs to defer investments in traditional infrastructure.

Overall, this will lead to the design of a Non-Wires Alternatives market for third-party service providers that is interoperable with participation in the IESO’s wholesale markets on a demonstration basis. Additionally, this will also lead to the development of communication and dispatch protocols for the IESO, local distribution companies, DERs and aggregators and deployment of information and communication technology infrastructure needed for demonstration purposes.

Lakefront Utilities (Ontario): Digital Utility Platform

• This is a 4-year project spanning from 2018-2022.
• It will receive total contributions worth $164,153 from NRCan.

Through the deployment of Utilismart’s Digital Utility platform, increases in distributed energy resources and EV charging penetration alongside replacement of overloaded transformers and feeders will help develop a more reliable and resilient grid. Plus, customers will have more support in their conversation efforts since they can be provided historical data, conservation tips as well as detailed billing.

Hydro-Quebec (Quebec): Smart Grid Deployment Off-grid Networks

• This is a 4-year project spanning from 2018-2022.
• It will receive total contributions worth $11,000,000 from NRCan.

Hydro-Quebec will deploy a microgrid control system as well as a battery energy storage system through 13 Indigenous communities.  Through using higher-order automation, Hydro-Quebec will improve the performance of its thermal generating assets and allow for the future integration of renewable energy.

Hydro-Quebec (Quebec): Lac-Megantic Microgrid

• This is a 3-year project spanning from 2018-2021.
• It will receive total contributions worth $3,384,000 from NRCan.

This project will be a demonstration and deployment of Distributed Energy Resource technologies in an innovative micro-grid that will see increased adoption of decentralized renewable energy generation. Additionally, this project will test control of DER technologies like batteries, solar panels, vehicle charging stations and home automation equipment in an intelligent micro-grid to help support the grid and reduce environmental impacts.