Regulation - LGIC
Draft amendments to Ontario Regulation 161/99 (Definitions and Exemptions) under the Ontario Energy Board Act, 1998 to exempt certain electricity transmission projects from Section 92 (Leave to Construct) approval
Regulation Number(s):
161/99
Instrument Type:
Regulation - LGIC
Bill or Act:
Ontario Energy Board Act, 1998
Summary of Decision:
The Ministry of Energy has moved forward with amendments to Ontario Regulation 161/99 (Definitions and Exemptions) under the Ontario Energy Board Act, 1998 to exempt certain electricity transmission projects from Section 92 (Leave to Construct) approval.
Decision Details:
Following consideration of comments received in response to our draft regulatory amendments, the government has adopted amendments to O. Reg 161/99 -Definitions and Exemptions, made under the Ontario Energy Board Act, 1998. As noted in the original proposal, these amendments are intended to exempt projects that are exclusively funded by commercial and industrial load and generator customers and that are not expected to have a significant impact on other electricity ratepayers from the requirement to obtain Leave to Construct approval under section 92 of the Ontario Energy Board Act, 1998. The language used in the final amendments is changed from the draft amendments that were included in this posting to improve clarity. The changes do not alter the policy intent or the effect of the regulations.
Decision Details:
Following consideration of comments received in response to our draft regulatory amendments, the government has adopted amendments to O. Reg 161/99 -Definitions and Exemptions, made under the Ontario Energy Board Act, 1998. As noted in the original proposal, these amendments are intended to exempt projects that are exclusively funded by commercial and industrial load and generator customers and that are not expected to have a significant impact on other electricity ratepayers from the requirement to obtain Leave to Construct approval under section 92 of the Ontario Energy Board Act, 1998. The language used in the final amendments is changed from the draft amendments that were included in this posting to improve clarity. The changes do not alter the policy intent or the effect of the regulations.
Analysis of Regulatory Impact:
No new administrative costs for business.
Further Information:
Link to Environmental Registry
O. Reg. 161/99: Definitions and Exemptions
Ontario Energy Board Act
The OEB’s filing requirements for electricity transmission projects (under Section 92 of the Ontario
(Download Adobe Reader)
OEB’s Transmission System Code
Proposal Number:
21-ENDM014
Posting Date:
July 13, 2021
Summary of Proposal:
We are posting draft amendments to Section 6.2 of O. Reg. 161/99 which will exempt electricity transmission projects that are exclusively paid for by commercial and industrial load and generator customers and therefore are not expected to have an impact on other electricity ratepayers from the requirements of Section 92 of the Ontario Energy Board Act (electricity Leave to Construct (LTC) proceedings).
A more complete description of the intentions and rationale for this proposal can be found in a prior posting, ERO 019-3038. We are posting potential draft amendments for further feedback in response to comments requesting an opportunity to review the draft amendments.
The amendments do not impact other aspects of the approvals process for projects that fall under the exemption, including electricity system impact assessments administered by the Independent Electricity System Operator (IESO) and environmental assessments administered by the Ministry of the Environment, Conservation and Parks (MECP). The OEB LTC approval for electricity transmission is scoped to the review of impacts to electricity prices and quality and reliability of service. Since the projects proposed to be eligible for exemption are funded by the customers seeking to connect, these projects are not expected to have a ratepayer impact. Impacts of these projects on quality and reliability of service will continue to be assessed through a system impact assessment. In other words, the proposed amendments will streamline the approvals process for eligible projects.
Please note that there is a separate proposal from MECP to update environmental assessment requirements for certain electricity transmission line projects (see https://ero.ontario.ca/notice/019-3937).
The draft amendments also remove expired provisions of Regulation 161/99. Clause 6.2 (1) (e) and Subsections 6.2 (2) and (3) as currently written are transition provisions dating back over 20 years and are no longer relevant. Our proposed amendments would take their place in the regulation.
A more complete description of the intentions and rationale for this proposal can be found in a prior posting, ERO 019-3038. We are posting potential draft amendments for further feedback in response to comments requesting an opportunity to review the draft amendments.
The amendments do not impact other aspects of the approvals process for projects that fall under the exemption, including electricity system impact assessments administered by the Independent Electricity System Operator (IESO) and environmental assessments administered by the Ministry of the Environment, Conservation and Parks (MECP). The OEB LTC approval for electricity transmission is scoped to the review of impacts to electricity prices and quality and reliability of service. Since the projects proposed to be eligible for exemption are funded by the customers seeking to connect, these projects are not expected to have a ratepayer impact. Impacts of these projects on quality and reliability of service will continue to be assessed through a system impact assessment. In other words, the proposed amendments will streamline the approvals process for eligible projects.
Please note that there is a separate proposal from MECP to update environmental assessment requirements for certain electricity transmission line projects (see https://ero.ontario.ca/notice/019-3937).
The draft amendments also remove expired provisions of Regulation 161/99. Clause 6.2 (1) (e) and Subsections 6.2 (2) and (3) as currently written are transition provisions dating back over 20 years and are no longer relevant. Our proposed amendments would take their place in the regulation.
Contact Address:
Effective Date:
October 31, 2022
Decision:
Approved