An overview of Global Adjustments in Ontario, Canada
There is something rewarding about sharing our predictive analytics technology with new customers. It’s their positive reaction when we uncover hidden savings by connecting weather patterns to energy usage. And even better, it’s not something many had considered in their operation’s early stages.
However, after gaining access to our highest metered forecasts our subscribers are able to pivot their operation’s power usage to take advantage of market volatility, with the previously undiscovered benefit of reduced operating costs.
Let’s first take a step back and introduce you to some predictive analytics basics as they relate to energy usage.
Many of you in Ontario have some working knowledge of ICI and GA.
Here is a brief intro our team put together to help further familiarize yourself with these acronyms and how they impact your operating costs.
Industrial Conservation Initiative (ICI): In an effort to reduce industry costs, the ICI is a demand response program designed to shift large electricity users’ consumption to off-peak hours.
Global Adjustment (GA): The Hourly Ontario Energy Price (HOEP) or the wholesale market price for electricity is one part of the total commodity cost for electricity. The GA, the part that covers the cost of building new electricity infrastructure in the province and maintaining existing resources among other things, reflects the difference between the HOEP and the regulated rates for power generation.
To demonstrate, the graph below illustrates the total commodity portion of electricity on your electricity bill. There is an inverse effect on the two columns – generally when the HOEP is lower, GA is higher and vice versa.
All customers pay GA. How they are billed depends on the type of consumer they are. Those that participate in the ICI, referred to as Class A customers, pay based on an annual calculation of their coincident peak demand, which in turn details their share of the GA cost.
Using power during off-peak times, however, its often easier said than done. That’s where Arcus Power’s expertise around ICI and GA, combined with our predictive analytics, comes into play by delivering energy forecasts that save our customers money.
Can you imagine knowing what will occur tomorrow, today?
How to qualify
Reach out to us and we’ll assist you with ICI qualification.
Here are some general parameters for you to determine if your operations are eligible to participate.
Customers must have an average monthly peak demand greater than 500 kW during the annual base period from May 1 to April 30.
Customers who are eligible may also include:
- Customers in the manufacturing and industrial sectors, including greenhouses, that average monthly peak demand of greater than 500 kW and less than or equal to 1 MW.
- Customers with an average peak demand of above 1 MW but less than or equal to 5 MW.
- Customers with maximum hourly demand for electricity in a month that exceeds an average of 5 MW for the applicable base period.
- Existing Class A customers who participated in one or more of the programs specified in Ontario Regulation 429/04 in Section 6.2 (3) and dropped below the peak demand threshold during a base period for an adjustment period that began on or after July 1, 2016.
When to apply
Each cycle of the ICI starts with a base period from May 1 to April 30. At the end of this base period customers are assessed for eligibility. If you qualify and wish to participate you need to opt into the ICI by June 15. You will be notified by your distributor before May 31 of each year if you are eligible. To opt in or out, contact your distributor.
We encourage you to reach out to us to learn more about how we deliver reliable energy market data access at scale to our customers, or simply click to begin your demo today.
Contact us to learn more. We’re here to support you in your mission.
Thank you.
Chris McCullough
VP of Sales & Marketing
Arcus Power
