OPA Feed-in Tariff Program: Connection Availability Assessment

Part of the application review process is to determine whether there is sufficient transmission and distribution capacity available for your project at the proposed connection point. When there is sufficient capacity available to connect your project, you will be offered a contract.

When connection availability is insufficient to connect your project, the OPA will determine the transmission and distribution upgrades required and, in conjunction with other applications that require the same upgrades, will assess whether the upgrades are justifiable. The upgrades that are justifiable will be included in transmission and distribution expansion plans. The contract will be offered once these upgrades have received the required approvals and the OPA is reasonably certain that they will be completed by your milestone date for commercial operation.

There are five tools designed to identify connection availability, or, when none is present, to facilitate the development of plans for expanding the grid to enable the connection of FIT projects:

The distribution availability test applies only to distribution-connected projects. It will be performed by your local distribution company if your project first passes the transmission availability test. This test will determine if there is sufficient connection availability on the distribution system to connect your renewable energy project.

If your project passes the economic connection test, it will wait in the FIT production line until the required grid upgrades have received the necessary approvals and the OPA is reasonably certain that they will be completed by your milestone date for commercial operation.


Background FIT Program Benefits FIT Program Partners Aboriginal Projects Community Projects Renewable Technologies Bioenergy Solar PV Waterpower Wind FIT Program Introduction Program Flowchart FIT Program Pricing Participation and Eligibility Submitting an Application Capacity Allocation Exempt Projects Connection Availability Assessment Program Launch Rules FIT Contract Offer and Acceptance Contract Requirements Introduction First Completion and Performance Security Milestones Notice to Proceed Second Completion and Performance Security Commercial Operation Contract Management Payments and Timelines Program Resources Domestic content November 29, 2010 Program Overview Price Schedule Application and Registration Instructions Domestic Content Contract, Exhibits and Forms Rules, Exhibits and Forms Standard Definitions Connection Availability Resources Support Programs FAQs Newsroom Related Links Program Archives Program Updates Program updates - current Program updates - previous Bi-weekly FIT and microFIT Program reports Public Consultation Upcoming Events Past Events Contact Us Subscribe Subscribe to receive email updates on the FIT Program. email address	Home >> FIT Program Connection Availability Assessment Part of the application review process is to determine whether there is sufficient transmission and distribution capacity available for your project at the proposed connection point. When there is sufficient capacity available to connect your project, you will be offered a contract. When connection availability is insufficient to connect your project, the OPA will determine the transmission and distribution upgrades required and, in conjunction with other applications that require the same upgrades, will assess whether the upgrades are justifiable. The upgrades that are justifiable will be included in transmission and distribution expansion plans. The contract will be offered once these upgrades have received the required approvals and the OPA is reasonably certain that they will be completed by your milestone date for commercial operation. There are five tools designed to identify connection availability, or, when none is present, to facilitate the development of plans for expanding the grid to enable the connection of FIT projects: Transmission Availability Test The transmission availability test will be performed by the OPA to determine if there is sufficient transmission capacity available to connect your renewable energy project. Distribution Availability Test The distribution availability test applies only to distribution-connected projects. It will be performed by your local distribution company if your project first passes the transmission availability test. This test will determine if there is sufficient connection availability on the distribution system to connect your renewable energy project. Economic Connection Test The economic connection test determines whether the ratepayer investment for the required grid upgrades to allow your renewable energy project to connect it justifiable and can be included in grid expansion plans. FIT Production Line If your project passes the economic connection test, it will wait in the FIT production line until the required grid upgrades have received the necessary approvals and the OPA is reasonably certain that they will be completed by your milestone date for commercial operation. FIT Reserve If your project does not pass the economic connection test, it will wait in the FIT reserve and serve as input to future expansion plans.	Search Key Documents FIT Price Schedule August 13, 2010 FIT Rules December 8, 2010 FIT Prescribed Forms August 11, 2010 FIT Multiple Project Guidelines August 4, 2010 FIT Contract December 8, 2010 Standard Definitions December 8, 2010 FIT Application Form Dec. 1, 2009 FIT Program Overview August 2010 Programme de TRG – Aperçu Août 2010 What's New April 1, 2011 Bi-weekly FIT and microFIT Program reports March 18, 2011 Bi-weekly FIT and microFIT Program reports March 4, 2011 Bi-weekly FIT and microFIT Program reports February 24, 2011 Second Round of Large-Scale Renewable Energy Projects February 18, 2011 Bi-weekly FIT and microFIT Program reports February 9, 2011 Rule change for CAE FIT applications February 9, 2011 One-year extension of Milestone Date for Commercial Operation available for FIT contract holders February 4, 2011 Bi-weekly FIT and microFIT Program reports February 1, 2011 New FIT Program Proposed for Commercial Aggregators January 21, 2011 Bi-weekly FIT and microFIT Program reports January 5, 2011 Bi-weekly FIT and microFIT Program reports December 21, 2010 Priority ranking of first-round FIT projects posted December 8, 2010 Proposed FIT connection rule amendment Upcoming Events
	FIT Home \| OPA Home \| Site Map \| Terms and Conditions \| Privacy Policy \| Contact Us ©2010 Ontario Power Authority The OPA wordmark and the phrase "Ontario Power Authority" are trademarks owned by the Ontario Power Authority.