February 1, 2011

The Ontario Power Authority is introducing a new stream in the Feed-In Tariff Program for commercial aggregators, called the CFIT (commercial feed-in-tariff) Program, to accommodate the unique nature of commercial micro-generation projects.

This program stream is intended for commercial entities with one or more micro-generation projects, those who are not eligible participants for the microFIT Program, and those who wish to take advantage of secured lender provisions not found in the microFIT contract.

The OPA committed in August 2010 to introducing a program for commercial aggregators, businesses that lease land or rooftops from individuals for multiple renewable energy projects.  A microFIT advisory panel was established, and it reviewed proposals and made recommendations on the CFIT Program. The OPA is now inviting broader stakeholder feedback on the draft CFIT Rules, Conditional Offer and Contract.

Comments on the draft CFIT Rules, Conditional Offer and Contract will be accepted for two weeks, until February 18, 2011.

Proposed key features of CFIT include:

• appropriate pricing – 71.3 cents per kilowatt-hour (kWh) for rooftop solar PV projects, 44.3 cents/kWh for ground-mounted solar PV projects
• contract provisions to permit a lender to have step-in rights in the event of a supplier default to the lender
• an application fee of $500 per megawatt, with a minimum fee of $500.

In setting the price for the CFIT Program, the OPA considered:

• equipment and installation costs for economies of scale realized by commercial aggregators
• ensuring a reasonable rate of return on equity of the project
• balancing the need to protect ratepayers with prices that are responsive to current market conditions
• ensuring long-term program sustainability
• the current FIT price schedule for other project sizes.

Potential changes to streamline the application and contract management processes of the CFIT program will require additional time and will be considered during the two-year program review in 2011.

Comments on the draft CFIT Rules and Contract will be accepted for two weeks, until February 18, 2011.  They can be sent by email to submissions@powerauthority.on.ca.

Draft CFIT Program Rules

Draft CFIT Contract

Draft CFIT Conditional Offer

CFIT Program Summary of Changes 

The OPA expects to begin accepting applications for the CFIT Program in mid-March 2011. 

Thank you for your interest in the Feed-In Tariff Program.