Ontario expands energy-efficiency programs, including paying customers to run A/C less

Ontario's electricity system operator is planning to roll out a program in which customers with smart thermostats would get paid to have their air conditioning remotely reduced on hot summer days.

It's one of a slew of conservation initiatives recommended by the Independent Energy System Operator (IESO) that the Energy Minister Todd Smith accepted Tuesday morning as the province seeks to manage rising demand from electrification.

Smith says they'll roll out new and expanded programs starting next year, with a cost of $342 million.

"This expansion will help deliver enough annual electricity savings to power about 130,000 homes every year, and reduce costs for consumers by over $650 million," he said at a news conference.

"It's a win for customers, it's a win for climate and a win for Ontario."

Smith says the programs announced Tuesday will have a significant benefit for all ratepayers by 2025. The government says that over a lifespan of up to 20 years, the programs will result in three million tonnes of greenhouse gas emission reductions.

Program breakdown

One of the programs will let households with central air conditioning and a smart thermostat volunteer to allow the IESO to lessen their cooling load in order to reduce peak demand on certain summer days and get paid an as-yet unspecified incentive.

They also include support for greenhouses in southwest Ontario — including incentives to install LED lighting or resources such as solar generation or battery storage — as well as enhancements to the Save On Energy Retrofit Program for businesses, institutions and municipalities.

"All these upgrades would not only reduce demand on the provincial grid, but also reduce energy use and operational costs," said Smith.

Smith says they're expecting a "solid uptake" in energy efficiency from businesses, farms, and homeowners — even if they're not too concerned with reducing emissions — as demands for energy increase.

"The one thing I will say is that businesses and homeowners across the province want to save money," said Smith.

The IESO has been planning new conservation initiatives as well as looking to procure new electricity generation while it looked to fill an upcoming electricity supply gap, with Pickering Nuclear Generating Station set to shut down and demand rising.

But Smith said last week that the province plans to run Pickering for an extra year, to 2026, and possibly refurbish it to operate for another 30 years as "unprecedented growth" in areas such as electric vehicle manufacturing means demand could increase more quickly than previously anticipated.

"Energy efficiency is one of the most reliable and cost-effective approaches to ensuring reliability on the grid," said Lesley Gallinger, President and CEO, of the IESO, in a release.

"By using energy wisely, we increase opportunities to support electrification initiatives and decarbonization efforts at the same time."

The ministry says the changes are expected to particularly impact Southwest Ontario, with regional peak demand savings of 225 megawatts, which will help alleviate regional electricity system constraints and foster economic development.

Opponents take aim

Critics of the Progressive Conservative government say the province would not be in as much of a supply crunch now if it hadn't cancelled 750 green energy contracts during Premier Doug Ford's first term.

"This program is woefully inadequate to address the climate crisis and the electricity shortage Ontario faces," said Ontario Green Party leader, Mike Schreiner.

Schreiner says instead, his party is calling on the government to implement a "comprehensive" building retrofit program that would see 40 per cent of existing homes and workplaces to net-zero by 2030, and 100 per cent by 2040.

"People will save money by saving energy and this government will be taking its first meaningful action to address the climate emergency."