August 1, 2014 – Ontario Power Authority (OPA) said it will offer 500 renewable energy contracts—representing 123.5MW of power—to successful applicants under the Feed-in Tariff (FIT) 3 program. The contracts could result in enough energy to power about 15,000 homes, noted OPA.

“The FIT contracts we are about to offer represent significant investment in Ontario and in our electricity system. They show that the transformation of our electricity system to be cleaner and more sustainable is well on its way,” said Colin Andersen, OPA CEO.

The total list includes 490 solar photovoltaic (PV) projects, eight bio-energy projects, one wind energy project and one waterpower project. Of these, 257 projects (60MW) are with Aboriginal participation, 161 projects (42MW) with municipal or public sector entity participation and 81 projects (21.5MW) with community participation. More than 95% of the successful applications had received municipal council support resolutions. FIT projects are generally those with a capacity of more than 10kW and up to 500kW, noted OPA.

CLICK HERE to see the complete list of FIT 3 contract offers.

“Ontario’s clean energy initiatives have attracted billions of dollars in new private sector investments, generated thousands of jobs and significantly increased the amount of clean energy in Ontario’s supply mix,” said the authority.

In addition, OPA said it is also ready to offer 63 contracts to successful applicants who applied to the Unconstructed Rooftop Solar Pilot (URSP). This stream had a separate procurement target of up to 15MW. These projects include two projects (0.35MW) with Aboriginal participation, four projects (0.45MW) with municipal or public sector entity participation and five projects (2.25MW) with community participation. More than 93% of the successful applications had received municipal council support resolutions.

CLICK HERE to see the complete list of URSP contract offers.

“Ontario is proud to be a North American leader in renewable energy. The province’s investments in clean energy initiatives, like the Feed-In Tariff Program, are attracting private sector investment, creating local jobs and helping to reduce greenhouse gas emissions,” said Bob Chiarelli, Ontario minister of energy.

According to OPA, both the FIT 3 and the URSP procurements were overseen by an independent evaluation monitor, who ensured that applications were reviewed and tested consistently and in accordance with the program rules.

The FIT program was launched in 2009 as part of Ontario’s Green Energy Act to encourage the development of the renewable energy sector in Ontario.