2030 Energy Strategy

Community-owned renewable generation guidelines seek opportunities to partner with Aboriginal groups to invest in major projects developed on traditional lands that serve new energy markets, such as energy for export. The Taltson hydroelectricity expansion is a good example of the type of project that could provide investment opportunities for Aboriginal governments. For community-based projects, the high cost of energy infrastructure in the NWT means that most renewable or alternative power projects require a subsidy to keep electricity rates from going up. Where the government chooses to subsidize a project, the subsidy will benefit electricity users and no profit will be allowed on those projects. COMMUNITY-OWNED RENEWABLE GENERATION What we heard during our regional engagements is that communities want to be part of the solution and want to produce renewable-generated electricity to displace diesel generated electricity. The NWT has adopted Net Metering, which allows customers to install up to 15kW of renewable electrical generation to offset their power use. Customers receive credit for excess power fed back to the utility, credit that can be applied to reduce their power bill. To complement Net Metering, the GNWT will allow community-owned renewable generation as a means for community governments to sell power directly to the local utility to displace diesel use. This approach is not the conventional independent power producer model where the utility issues a request for more generation to meet increasing | I I I New community-owned renewable power projects serving customers in a community must be majority owned by a community or Aboriginal government or community- based organization. This policy allows between 15kW and the community based limit of renewable power to be installed in a diesel community and complements the existing net metering policy, which allows up to 15kW per installation The utility will set total aggregate allowable renewable energy by community to ensure efficiency, reliability and security. Interested parties must verify with the utility that additional renewable energy is practical for the local electrical distribution system and enter into an agreement with the utility before initiating a renewable energy project. Under the agreement it will be the responsibility of the community to operate and maintain its equipment, measure energy generation and bill the utility, unless otherwise agreed to by the utility. The purchase of electricity from community-owned renewable generation must not increase electricity rates, as set by the NWT Public Utilities Board. A generally accepted purchase price is the displaced or marginal cost of diesel taking into account generator efficiency losses and other factors. I This policy does not apply to ownership of core utility assets such as transmission and distribution assets or diesel generators. The utility must maintain responsibility for these assets to ensure system reliability and security. System resources intended to keep the community electrical grid stable or increase the amount of renewables that can be installed, such as batteries or solid state electronics, will be owned and operated by the utility to ensure system reliability, unless otherwise agreed to by the utility. A community producing power for sale to the local utility should not be considered a regulated utility. The utility is not responsible to help the community develop renewable energy projects beyond connecting to the electrical system, which may be subject to fees. The community should provide sufficient funding, or seek external funding and support. The utility will provide community interconnection standards that the community must follow in order to safely connect to the grid. 13

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