Ontario Businesses Join Homeowners in Quest to Reduce Province's Peak Electricity Use

TORONTO, Aug. 2, 2007 -- Canada NewsWire

The Ontario Power Authority (OPA) is making a significant addition to its suite of business-focused Demand Response programs as part of its long term planning to address electricity system supply and demand needs.

The new Demand Response program will encourage businesses to be ready to respond to requests to reduce their operations during peak periods - when energy is most expensive and demands on the system are highest. Program rules for the program were posted on the OPA's website today.

The business-focused program, developed in co-operation with the Independent Electricity System Operator following an extensive pilot project in 2006, complements the existing residential peaksaver(TM) programs, which reduces residential use during the same critical periods. Together, the programs benefit all electricity consumers by enhancing system reliability and reducing the need to build new generation.

"Our primary task in the next few years is to find cost-effective ways to reduce peak demand for electricity," says Paul Shervill, OPA Vice President of Conservation and Sector Development. "Through Demand Response initiatives we hope to be able to offset new growth in peak demand for a number of years to come."

Later in August, the OPA expects to announce preliminary program rules for another Demand Response program. The new program - called load-shifting - will encourage businesses to shift part of their operations away from peak periods of electricity use.

"We believe these programs - along with others in the works - will create one of the most aggressive Demand Response initiatives in North America," says Shervill. Similar programs in other heavy power use regions, such as California, have proven to be an effective and flexible alternative to building new generation and transmission capabilities.

In 2006, the OPA launched the province's first phase of Demand Response programs by calling on Ontario's largest industrial and manufacturing companies to voluntarily reduce power use at peak times. The pilot program attracted six participants and yielded some 183 MW of reductions when the system most needed it - enough to power 9,000 Ontario homes.

"Demand Response is comparable to the residential peaksaver(TM) program, where customers can sign up to have their air conditioners turned off during peak periods," says OPA Director of DR and Industrial Programs, Sean Brady. "However Demand Response for business goes well beyond cutbacks to air conditioning and allows each participating company to examine their operations in detail and make operational choices that suit them."

"By predictably taking large chunks of demand off the system, we believe that the OPA's Demand Response programs will become a critical tool for better managing electricity demand in Ontario," he adds.

Ontario Power Authority

In pursuit of its mandate of ensuring an adequate, long-term supply of electricity for Ontario, the OPA creates and implements conservation and demand management programs, ensures adequate investment in new supply infrastructure, performs long-term electricity system planning, and facilitates the development of a more sustainable and competitive electricity system.

SOURCE: Ontario Power Authority

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